FG launches Temporary Passport for Nigerians in the diaspora

Arakunle Kayode

Nigeria’s Interior Minister, Rauf Aregbesola, has launched the Nigerian Temporary Passport (NTP) on Tuesday at the Nigeria Immigration Service (NIS) headquarters in Abuja. The new temporary passport is a variety of passport that will be issued at the Nigerian Embassies or at the Nigerian High Commissions outside the country to Nigerians desirous of returning home but whose national passport is not available.

The minister, in a statement at the launch, said the temporary passport is compliant with International Civil Aviation Organization (ICAO) standards and guideline and will be valid for only 30 days before the date of traveling but is not in any way a replacement for the Nigerian international passport. He also said that it will only serve temporarily in the case of misplacement or loss of the Nigerian passport by a Nigerian abroad.

“It is a designed travel document for Nigerian use and not for replacement; hitherto and Emergency travel which was already issued in Nigeria for emergency situation or for the purpose of returning home from any other country to Nigeria,” the minister said.

Also speaking at the launching on Tuesday was Muhammed Babandede, who is the Comptroller-General of the Nigeria Immigration Service (NCS). He stated that the replacement of Emergency Travel Certificate has been observed to be a security threat to Nigeria and the global community so it will not be an ordinary paper to avoid any unnecessary security features of a travel document.

Meanwhile the Temporary Passport is functioning as the channel to Nigerians’ desire for effective identity management, as it has a chip and surface personalization which will further enhance the current Electronic Passport Management System (EPMS).