The Kenyan government has released new guidelines on important services including promising to reduce the number of days for processing passports.
According to the new schedule, the government through the Interior Ministry has promised to process all passports within five working days after submitting applications.
In revising the passport waiting time, the Kithure Kindiki-led ministry stated, “We, believe that responses from Kenyans are the basic ingredients for effective and efficient service delivery”.
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The government has promised to fast-track the processing of passports, in June the ministry announced they were importing a new printing machine to clear the backlog.
Earlier this month, the government promised to process the key travel document within a week, including all the backlogs that go back to last year.
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Speaking while addressing the media, Kindiki said the ministry is also working towards making sure that all pending passport applications will be cleared in the next 21 day
“I want to pledge on behalf of my colleagues in the ministry that we will clear all the backlog of passports within the next 21 days and from that date. If it is classified as an urgent or emergency application, one must get that passport within 24 hours. We will make sure that anybody who applies for a new passport must get it within 7 days.” He said.
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In April 2023, Immigration Principal Secretary Julius Bitok said there are currently 63,265 passport applications pending issuance, with the majority being the popular 34-page A-series.
The backlog has been caused by a shortage of booklets and an increase in demand for passports, particularly by Kenyans seeking employment abroad and students enrolling in foreign institutions.
According to Bitok, the government is in talks with potential investors to invest in local manufacturing of passports, for faster and comparatively cheaper supplies.
“With the new delivery, the backlog of 15,358 A-series, 10,045 B-series, and 37,810 C-series passports that were queued due to the booklet shortage will now be cleared.”
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