The Minister of Interior, Dr Olubunmi Tunji-Ojo has said that the Federal Government will continue to leverage technology to strengthen border security as well as enhance travel experience for Nigerians and other nationals coming into the country.
Accordingly, Tunji-Ojo said the government through the Nigeria Immigration Service has commenced the installation of E-verification gates at the Nnamdi Azikiwe International Airport in Abuja, as well as Lagos, Kano, and Enugu International Airports.
The Minister spoke on Monday when he was joined by the Permanent Secretary, Dr Aishetu Gogo Ndayako and other top directors in the Ministry of Interior, on an inspection tour of facilities at the Nnamdi Azikiwe International Airport and the Nigeria Immigration Service Headquarters, in Abuja.
The delegation inspected the ongoing installation of E-verification gates at the Nnamdi Azikiwe International Airport in Abuja, which Tunji-Ojo said was part of a comprehensive strategy to bolster internal security and streamline the arrival experience for Nigerians entering the country.
He noted the state-of-the-art E-verification gates are a major component of the E-Immigration project, in the ongoing efforts to modernise and optimise immigration processes across the nation’s airports.
While expressing satisfaction with the quality and progress of the work done so far, the Minister disclosed that four e-gates have been successfully installed out of the 10 expected to be installed at the International wing of Nnamdi Azikiwe Airport.
“We came to look at the progress of work and I’m happy that you can see that out of the 10 e-gates to be installed in Abuja, four have been installed and I have the assurances of the contractor that the remaining six will be installed before the end of the end of the month.
“With an impressive clearance time of just 30 seconds per individual, the gates are set to establish a new standard for efficiency in airport processing, comparable to global benchmarks,” he said.
Speaking on the insecurity threatening the nation, Tunji-Ojo said he was delighted that once the projects are completed, Nigerians would no longer be at the mercy of Immigration officers or anybody when they arrived to the country.
“As you can see, it is a matter of putting in your passport, scanning your passport, opening the gate, reading your facials, your biometric and it passes you, and you leave. You don’t need to have an encounter with any Immigration officer again.
“But if you are a person of interest, I must stress that because, this whole purpose is not for you to pass in record time, no; it is also to secure the nation. It is to add another layer to our national security architecture,” he stated.
He further stressed the transformative impact of this investment, noting that it will significantly enhance national security by providing an additional layer of scrutiny for inbound travellers.
“Through advanced biometric scanning and automated flagging systems, the gates will swiftly identify individuals of interest or those on watchlists, bolstering the efforts of the Nigeria Immigration Service (NIS) to safeguard the nation’s borders,” he said.
During the inspection, Tunji-Ojo also assessed the progress of construction and installation work at the Command-and-Control Centre and Border Control Data Centre, both housed within the NIS headquarters.
He commended the NIS for exceeding 70 per cent completion on these critical infrastructure projects, affirming the agency’s commitment to adopting cutting-edge technology for operational efficiency and security enhancement.
The project aims to deliver a total of 40 E-verification gates across multiple airports by the end of the first quarter. These installations will include 10 gates in Abuja, 17 in Lagos, five in Kano, and four each in Enugu and Port Harcourt.
“With these transformative initiatives, Nigeria is poised to enhance border security, streamline immigration processes, and provide travellers with a safer, more efficient travel experience.
“Nigerians will soon be able to sleep with their two eyes closed, knowing fully well that their borders are well protected, and the Nigerian state is secured,” Tunji-Ojo assured.
