MONRTOVIA: The Government of Liberia (GOL) has opened six Passport Centers around the world.
The centers are situated in Accra, Ghana; Abuja, Nigeria; Beijing, People’s Republic of China (PRC); and Nairobi, Kenyan.
Two mobile Passport Application Centers (PACs) will be sent to Washington, D.C., United States of America, where passport officers will travel to areas of the U.S. and Canada with high concentration of Liberians and where the need for the service is long overdue.
Addressing a Ministry of Information regular Press briefing on Thursday January 19, 2023, Foreign Minister Dee-Maxwell Saah Kemayan said, the Passport Application Centers (PACs) will become operational immediately to serve Liberians in Ghana, Kenyan and neighboring countries, while the PACs in Beijing and Abuja in PRC and Nigeria respectively will be functional.
He said the opening of these additional PACs and the deployment of the mobile application centers will accelerate the issuance of the remaining passports under existing contract, which extension is being negotiated by the Liberian government.
Minister Kemayan who is also the Dean of the Cabinet, said the applicants will be able to pay passport fees, make appointments online and visit nearby PACs to do fingerprinting and photographing.
He said after the completion of the application process, the Bureau of Passport and Visas in Monrovia will then receive and review the application information and issue passports within six weeks or less which will save applicants the cost of travelling to Liberia.
According to him, the online payment platform will allow the Liberian government to track revenue generated from the sale of passports with direct deposits in one central location, instead of in accounts at the missions where the centers are located.
He said applicants wishing to obtain passports abroad are urged to visit the Foreign Ministry’s website to complete the application form, schedule appointments and make payments, using Visa, MasterCard.
Minister Kemayan, however, disclosed that arrangements are being made to deploy additional mobile passport application centers in the immediate future to other countries where there is a large concentration of Liberians.
According to the Liberian Foreign Minister, besides Washington D.C. and New York in the USA, PACs can be found at the Embassies of Liberia in the United Kingdom and Brussels, Belgium.
He, however, clarified that in February, 2023, additional 20 Passport Centers will be opened in Brussels, Belgium; Asia, America, UAE and other Countries around world where Liberians are residing and do not have access to the facilities to capture biometrics for acquiring Liberians passports.
