We Issued Over 2m Passports To Nigerians In 2023 – Immigration

The Nigeria Immigration Service (NIS), has disclosed that mass relocation of Nigerians to developed countries also known as ‘Japa’ spurred an unprecedented rise in the number of passport applications in the country.

This is as the sevice revealed that it issued more than two million passports to Nigerians in 2023. 

Comptroller-General of Immigration, Caroline Wura-Ola Adepoju, disclosed this on Tuesday, during a Diaspora virtual lecture series.

The lecture was tagged ‘New Passport Policy/Processes for Nigerians in the Diaspora Confirmation’ organised by the Nigerians in Diaspora Commission (NIDCOM).

According to Adepoju, the service in 2021 recorded the issuance of 1.3 million passports while 1.5 million passports were issued in the following year 2022 representing about a 50 per cent surge in the applications as a result of exodus number of people seeking greener pastures abroad.

Also, in 2023, there was over 100 per cent increase in applications with 2,141,300 passports issued last year.

Recall, the former Minister of Interior, Ogbeni Rauf Aregbesola, had improved the automation of the passport application process which began in 2016 by making application strictly online and also launching a tracking service. The new minister has however included the upload of images on the passport application platform.

Adepoju thereby lauded the automation of the passport process to reduce human interface with the immigration officers, as a great initiative for passport applicants.

The CGI stated that since the automation went live, over 100,000 applications were received online, and over 80 per cent of them were processed without challenges.

She added that the reform of the passport process would reduce pressure on the strained facilities of NIS nationwide.

Speaking at the lecture, the Interior Minister, Olubunmi Tunji-Ojo, promised that Nigerians in the Diaspora would no longer experience the pains of endless wait to obtain their passports.

Chairman/CEO of NIDCOM, Hon. Abike Dabiri-Erewa, commended the Minister and the CGI for the milestone achievements recorded within a short period, culminating in easing the pains of Nigerians.