By John Umeh
In a major breakthrough for Nigeria’s immigration system, the Minister of Interior, Dr. Olubunmi Tunji-Ojo, has announced that citizens can now receive their passports within 24 hours of approval.
The minister made this known during an inspection of the newly inaugurated Centralised Passport Personalisation Centre at the Nigeria Immigration Service (NIS) headquarters in Abuja.
According to him, the upgrade is part of President Bola Ahmed Tinubu’s Renewed Hope Agenda, which has successfully cleared backlogs and ended the long delays that once frustrated passport applicants.
“The era of backlogs and manual personalisation is over. Nigerians can now expect faster, more reliable service as we strengthen the integrity of our travel documents,” Tunji-Ojo declared.
With the new system, production capacity has surged from just 250–300 booklets per machine daily to between 4,500 and 5,000, placing Nigeria among global leaders such as the United States, the United Kingdom, France, and India in adopting advanced passport systems.
The minister praised the collaborative efforts of the Permanent Secretary, Dr. Magdalene Ajani, the Comptroller-General of Immigration, Mrs. Kemi Nandap, and other officials, noting that the project was delivered in partnership with IRIS Smart Technologies Ltd. without direct government funding.
Describing the achievement as a landmark in the 62-year history of the Immigration Service, Tunji-Ojo said the development has restored confidence in Nigeria’s travel documents and underscored the government’s resolve to build lasting institutions.
