E-passports start 2015
Oct 14, 2014
The Directorate of Citizenship and Immigration Control in the internal affairs ministry has set a 2015 target for the roll-out of electronic passports using information gathered from the national identity cards
By Samuel Sanya
The Directorate of Citizenship and Immigration Control in the internal affairs ministry has set a 2015 target for the roll-out of electronic passports using information gathered from the national identity cards.
The new passports will replace the existing machine-readable ones. Gen. Aronda Nyakairima, the internal affairs minister, said the new passports will meet standards set by the International Civil Aviation Organisation, the East African Community and bolster internal security.
He was addressing a two-day workshop attended by Internal Security Organisation operatives and representatives from the ministries of internal affairs, foreign affairs and ICT at Ridar Hotel, Seeta.
The e-passport is the same as a regular passport with the addition of a small contact-less integrated circuit (computer
chip) embedded in the back cover.
The chip securely stores the same data visually displayed on the photo page of the passport, and additionally includes a digital photograph. It can also include medical, traffic, financial and other information.
“The world has never been in a greater panic than it is right now due to threats from terrorism, and epidemics like Ebola. If you are not e-compliant, you are a step back. We do not want to be left behind,” Aronda said.
Burundi and South Sudan have already upgraded their passports to e-passports. Several countries in Europe, America,
Asia and Latin America have long adopted e-passports.
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