Electronic Passports Rollout Delayed

The Government is yet to start the production of electronic passports (e-passports), with the Registrar-General’s office currently doing trial runs.

This was revealed by the Deputy Minister of Information, Publicity and Broadcasting Services, Kindness Paradza, in an interview with NewsDay on Wednesday. He said:

They (e-passports) are not yet issued, but there are logistics that are being done. The Minister of Home Affairs, Hon Kazembe Kazembe will issue a full statement next week about it. But everything is on course. Currently, they are doing trial runs.

The E-Passport was launched by President Emmerson Mnangagwa last month. The document comes with more security features in order to protect against identity theft and counterfeiting of travel documents.

The Ministry of Home Affairs and Cultural Heritage said the Government was working with Garsu Pasaulis (GP) in the production of e-passports and on other vital civil registration documents.

The ordinary e-passport will cost US$100 while an emergency or express e-passport will cost US$200.

More: NewsDay