Society Gists

Olubunmi Tunji-Ojo, minister of interior, says passports will be delivered to homes and offices of applicants from February 2024.

Tunji-Ojo spoke on Monday during the opening ceremony of the 2023 University of Lagos International Week.

The minister said applicants would  not need to wait longer than two weeks before their passports would be ready.

“We have commenced the automation of our end-to-end passport application process, and we have given a timeline from which Nigerians will begin to experience the sweet experience,” Tunji-Ojo said.

“By implication, Nigerians will not need to wait longer than two weeks before they get their passport.

“By January next year, Nigerians will be able to complete this application process online, and by February next year, with collaboration and partnership with other relevant stakeholders, Nigerians will have their passports delivered to their homes, offices, and other locations of their choice.

“This, of course, would be extended to our visa application process. We are deploying technology throughout the entire process to make it as seamless as possible.

“To achieve this, we have set everything into motion to open more visa application centres across the world.

“In this regard, we are also working on strengthening our visa-on-arrival policy.

“We are working with the Ministry of Foreign Affairs to enforce the principle of the doctrine of reciprocity, and a committee has been set up in the ministry to achieve this.”

He further called for the harmonisation of data to restore the integrity of travel documents.

“Identity is who we are, what we are, and what we live for. But today, what we have is a duplication of our registration,” Tunji-Ojo added.

“Arguably, Nigeria is the only country I know that has a BVN for the bank, the international passport, the NIN, SIM card registration for telecos, and so on all of which request your data.

“The integrity of our travel documents must be restored through the harmonisation of our data.”