CBN responsible for passport scarcity — NIS

The Nigerian Immigration Service (NIS) has blamed the scarcity of International passport booklets on the Central Bank of Nigeria (CBN) policy on forex.

The Comptroller-General of the service, Idris Jere, said this at a public hearing organised by an ad hoc Committee of the House of Representatives in Abuja.

“Foreign exchange regulation policy of the government and CBN’s refusal to grant access to forex for importation of the passport booklets.

“We generate forex from sale of passport but we do not have access to buy the same booklet and that is a challenge for NIS.

“The factors responsible for scarcity of passport include the inability to setup passport producing factory in Nigeria as its production is done abroad.

“The major seven component used for producing passports are sold in international market and the assemblage and production are done in Malaysia,” he said.