Nigeria’s Consul General in New York, Amb. Lot Egopija, has stated that the federal government is making efforts to improve the passport application processing system in the United States and other Nigerian embassies and consulates worldwide.
According to jerrymusa.com at a town hall/town hall meeting hybrid held with the Nigerian community in New York and places under the New York Jurisdiction, Egopija made the promise. Cleveland, Ohio, was the site of the gathering.
Connecticut, Delaware, Illinois, Indiana, Iowa, Maine, Massachusetts, Michigan, New Hampshire, New Jersey, New York, Nebraska, Ohio, and North Dakota are just a few of the twenty states that make up the New York Jurisdiction.
Additional states include South Dakota, Rhode Island, Wisconsin, Minnesota, Vermont, and Pennsylvania.
Do not forget that the Nigeria Community of Greater Cleveland and the Nigerians in Diaspora Organisation Americas, North East Ohio Chapter, hosted the event.
Egopija said the federal government was striving to fix the problem of the Nigerian consulate in New York having to travel to Washington, DC, to get passports made in this day and age of technology.
Some attendees were curious about the Federal Government’s plans to implement a system that would allow Nigerians to renew their passports without visiting embassies or consulates to provide biometric information.
When asked about the difficulties Nigerians have had renewing their passports in the United States, he said the government was aware of the issue.
He claims that the administration is considering revamping the passport renewal process in the hopes that fewer people will travel abroad.
Because America is so large, we are under a lot of strain. Travel time for our citizens within our jurisdiction to reach New York City can exceed several hours at times.
“For instance, a trip from Minnesota to New York is close to a 20-hour journey. Therefore, we do not want our citizens to put themselves in danger in order to renew their passports.
The ambassador also presented an update on passport production, relationships with Nigerian associations, emergency travel certificates, and visa concerns.
He said that the consulate had set up a WhatsApp channel through which all Nigerian organisation heads may disseminate timely consular updates to their constituents.
It was simpler to announce the temporary halt in passport services and explain why over the WhatsApp app.
Egopija told the group that the consulate-general had stopped accepting biometrics from passport applications as of November 13. This was due to technical difficulties with the system.
He suggested they constantly double-check the website for any changes before making the trip to provide biometrics.
Egopija encouraged his countrymen to visit the consulate’s website for further details and encouraged comments on how to improve consular services.
According to him, the website’s Frequently Asked Questions section already contains answers to some of the inquiries.
The consul-general thanked those in attendance for their enthusiasm and promised to enhance consular assistance for Nigerians.
Your help is greatly appreciated. This initiative was launched by the consulate as a means of fostering partnerships.Our eleventh installment! Please, God, let it stay this way. I appreciate the kind welcome we’ve received here in Cleveland.
We are overjoyed and excited for the upcoming town hall meeting in February of 2019.