The Nigerian Government has established a Centralised Passport Personalisation Centre at the Nigeria Immigration Service (NIS) Headquarters in Abuja, Nigeria’s capital.
The newly commissioned centre has the capacity to produce 5,000 passport booklets daily, significantly boosting efficiency in passport issuance.
During an inspection of the completed facility, the Minister of Interior, Dr Olubunmi Tunji-Ojo, assured Nigerians of improved service delivery.
He stated that with the development, “Nigerians can now expect faster, more reliable, and globally trusted passports.”
Dr Tunji-Ojo emphasised that the achievement was a direct outcome of the Renewed Hope Agenda of President Bola Ahmed Tinubu, which seeks to enhance government services.
He noted that the initiative is historic, saying it is “the first of its kind in the 62-year history of the Nigeria Immigration Service (NIS).”
The Minister described the project as a breakthrough for the nation.
“This gesture is a big win for Nigerians,” he remarked, highlighting that it places Nigeria among the global league of countries such as the U.S., U.K., France, and India that operate centralised passport personalisation systems.
According to him, “The centre is aimed radically to transform passport production, boosting output from just 250–300 booklets per machine daily to an astonishing 4,500–5,000 — with approved passports ready for collection within 24 hours.”
He further noted that “the era of backlogs and manual processes is over”, expressing satisfaction with ongoing reforms in the NIS.
These include: The adoption of a single uniform passport series to eliminate discrepancies;
full integration into the ICAO Public Key Directory (PKD) for global authentication of Nigerian passports, and deployment of the new system across all passport offices and Nigerian missions abroad.
Dr Tunji-Ojo also commended the government’s technical partner, IRIS Smart Technology Ltd, for successfully executing the project “without a direct draw from public funds.”
He added, “This project is not just about building passports, it is about building enduring institutions that work for Nigeria.”
The Minister lauded President Tinubu for the political will and support that made the initiative possible, and commended staff of the Nigeria Immigration Service for their dedication.
He was accompanied on the inspection tour by the Permanent Secretary of the Ministry of Interior, Magdalene Ajani, and the Comptroller General of the Nigeria Immigration Service, Kemi Nandap.