The Kenyan Immigration Department has been grappling with several challenges that have disrupted its passport application and collection services.
In a statement released on Tuesday, the Directorate of Immigration Services clarified the root causes of these delays. One of the primary culprits behind the disruption is a technical malfunction that has rendered one of the printing machines used for passport production unusable. Compounding this issue are supply chain disruptions that have impacted the availability of essential materials required for passport processing. These unforeseen circumstances have resulted in significant inconveniences for Kenyan citizens seeking to apply for or collect their passports.
“We regret to inform our clients that we are currently experiencing a downtime that has affected our normal passport application receiving and collection services. Our engineers are working to resolve the issue and ensure the resumption of normal services as soon as possible,” Immigration said on X.
The department regrets the situation and assures affected applicants that alternative dates will be promptly provided. Ironically, this setback occurs shortly after the Immigration Department announced the acquisition of two new passport printing machines intended to address the existing passport backlog and expedite the processing of travel documents. Interior Cabinet Secretary Kithure Kindiki emphasized the government’s commitment to resolving historical passport processing delays.
Before the disruption, the backlog of pending passports had reached a staggering 724,000 applications by March 11, 2024. However, the department successfully resolved this backlog, and as of April 18, 50,000 pending applications were ready for delivery. To further streamline the process, the Immigration Department has set ambitious targets aiming to process all passport applications within 21 days from the submission date, effective May 1, 2024. This processing period will gradually reduce to seven days starting from August 1, 2024, and eventually to just three days beginning September 1, 2024.
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