A chip-embedded biometric passport, (E-Passport) was yesterday launched in Accra by President Nana Addo Dankwa Akufo-Addo to enhance travel processes and national security.
The new E-passport embodies a cutting-edge technology designed to enhance document security, safeguard national identity, and meet the stringent standards of the International Civil Aviation Organisation (ICAO).
Launching it, Nana Akufo-Addo said that the innovation was a crucial step in curbing identity theft, and eliminating fraudulent access to the country’s travel documents.
At its core, President Akufo-Addo said the new passport was a pledge to protect the identity and dignity of every Ghanaian.
Furthermore, the President noted that the e-passport comes with advanced biometric features securely embedded in a microchip, and that it is virtually impervious to tampering or forgery.
President Akufo-Addo said the passport aligns seamlessly with global systems, ensuring that Ghanaian travellers are recognised and processed with efficiency and respect at international airports equipped with modern biometric recognition technologies.
“It is not just a document—it is a symbol of our credibility and global standing,” President Akufo-Addo said.
He said that the passport was part of a broader reform of passport administration system.
President Akufo-Addo said that the government was introducing system-wide upgrades, including modern security document printers, an enhanced online application platform, and streamlined processes at passport offices across the country and at Ghanaian missions abroad.
According to him, the new document aimed to resolve long-standing challenges, including the inefficiencies and vulnerabilities that have enabled the scourge of “goro boys.”
President Akufo-Addo added that the initiative, a collaborative effort between government, private sector and various stakeholders, underscored the strategic importance of public-private partnerships in driving national development.
For her part the Minister of Foreign Affairs and Regional Integration, Ms Shirley Ayorkor Botchwey, said that the ministry started the chip-embedded passport project in 2016 through a Build, Operate, and Transfer (“BOT”) arrangement.
She said that the Ministry partnered with Biometric Travel Solutions Limited, a private Ghanaian firm, to undertake the project, aimed at bringing passports into strict compliance with the International Civil Aviation Organisation’s (“ICAO”) regulations.
“I am confident that the introduction of this state-of-the-art chip-embedded passport positions us against identity theft, document tampering, and unauthorised access,” she said.
The Chief Director of Foreign Affairs and Regional Integration, Ambassador Ramses J. Cleland, said that it was important that the citizenry recognised and appreciated the chip-embedded passport as a gateway to new opportunities to advance economic growth in the country.
BY PRECIOUS NYARKO BOAKYE
