Shirley Ayorkor Botchway
Ministry of Foreign Affairs and Regional Integration has announced that government has extended the validity of passports from the current five years to 10 years.
A memo to that effect and transmitted to the country’s missions abroad and other relevant establishments was spotted by DAILY GUIDE.
It read: “Missions are hereby informed that government has decided to extend the validity of ordinary passport booklets issued to qualified Ghanaian applicants from five to ten years (5-10 years) with effect from 31st March 2019. The processing fees remain the same until further notice”.
The memo was signed by the Deputy Minister of Foreign Affairs, Mohammed Habibu Tijani.
The government’s decision was preceded by a growing demand that government review the validity of the travel document.
Many who shared this position cited the inconvenience of renewal every five years. The decision has been met with excitement and elation by a cross-section of Ghanaians.
It is the first time that such a review has taken place. A question which is being posed by many passport holders is whether they too would have to endorse the extension.
By A.R. Gomda