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The Ministry for Foreign Affairs and Regional Integration has indicated the need to raise passport application fees in the coming days due to a shortage of raw materials and equipment, aiming to meet the high demand at the passport office.
The Deputy Minister of Foreign Affairs and Regional Integration, Kwaku Ampratwum-Sarpong, mentioned the necessity, citing production costs and the current affordability compared to other countries in West Africa’s sub-region.
He indicated that there are ongoing discussions with Parliament to finalize approved fees.
Ampratwum-Sarpong lamented that Ghanaians were currently paying 8 dollars compared to other neighbours who paid about 40 dollars for the same service.
He added that there are plans to introduce chip-embedded passports in the second quarter of 2024 to enhance security in line with ICAO standards.
“Liberia charges $50, we charge $8, meaning we have to subsidize every passport. So the money to buy the printers is used to subsidize the passports… And also, we are thinking of upgrading our passport from biometric to chip-embedded. So the chip-embedded version is going to cost more. If we continue charging at $8, we will continue to face the problems that we are having at the passport office… So we have to raise the fees,” he said.
Source: Citinewsroom.com
