The Federal Government has officially ended passport production at multiple centres nationwide, transitioning to a single, centralised system for the first time since the Nigeria Immigration Service (NIS) was established in 1963.
Minister of Interior, Dr Olubunmi Tunji-Ojo, disclosed this on Thursday during an inspection of the newly completed Centralised Passport Personalisation Centre at the NIS Headquarters in Abuja.
He described the project as a landmark reform aimed at boosting efficiency and transparency in the issuance of Nigerian passports.
“Since the establishment of the Nigeria Immigration Service in 1963, we have never had a centralised passport production centre. For the first time in 62 years, we are witnessing this milestone,” Tunji-Ojo said.
According to him, the centre is “100 per cent ready” and will drastically reduce delays, improve accountability, and make passport delivery more effective.
“With this reform, Nigeria can now be more productive and efficient in delivering passport services to its citizens at home and abroad,” he added.
Officials said the centralisation will also help curb corruption, reduce cases of passport racketeering, and speed up the issuance process.