NIS Bags Award for Immigration Service
The Presidential Enabling Business Environment Council (PEBEC), on 11th March 2020, at the Banquet Hall of the State House, Presidential Villa, conferred on the Nigeria Immigration Service the prestigious award of “The Most Reform Minded Agency 2020”.
The Comptroller General of Nigeria Immigration Service, Muhammad Babandede, MFR, expressed his profound appreciation on behalf of all the officers and men of the NIS who worked as a team to make this feat happen and being part of the various reforms that have encouraged ease of doing business through the Visa regime. Most recently, on the 4th February 2020, President Muhammadu Buhari GCFR presented the Nigeria Visa Policy 2020 to the public at the State House Presidential Villa. A product of Visa reform that has transformed the country’s Visa regime in the diplomatic circle and practice. Also is the Biometric e-visa for international travelers to Nigeria.
The Service also embarked in 2015 on document and process reform for all official documents and ways of rendering services to the general public culminating in the review of the Immigration Act of 1963, birthing the Immigration Act 2015, Immigration Regulation 2017, Nigeria Immigration Service National Border Management 2019-2023, Immigration Manual 2019 for laws, regulations, and processes of issuance of facilities across the NIS service widows.
In line with reforms embarked upon within 3 years, the Passport document and process was reviewed resulting in the production of the 10 year validity enhanced passport with over 25 security features in line with ICAO standard for travel documents. Also introduced was the Refugee passport called Convention Passport and other categories of Passports.
The Nigeria Immigration Service National Border Management Strategy 2019 – 2023 is the driver document for the Border Management Strategy emplaced to strengthen secured and safe border, part of which is the deployment of the Border Control tool known as Migration Information Data Analysis System (MIDAS), deployed to major Entry points, and four(4) International Airports in the country.
Also, the Human Resource Management, Planning Research and Statistics Directorates were upgraded with facilities that enable information on staff nominal roll, disposition, postings, distribution, management and administration, salaries and all emoluments to be e-based to streamline the Management and administration processes in the Nigeria Immigration Service.
Migration reform came on the 15th July 2019 when President Muhammadu Buhari, GCFR, commissioned the Migrant e-registration exercise to register all non-Nigerians residing in Nigeria to afford the Nigerian Government the opportunity to know precisely the total number of Migrants resident in Nigeria and their Migration Status, while also promoting inter-agency synergy through sharing of reliable and verifiable data and information on Migrants resident in Nigeria.
This major reform is the basis for Visa on Arrival at the point of Entry for Holders of African Union Passport and others qualified under the policy enshrined in the Presidential declaration of Visa on Arrival for Africans. This leadership role is aimed at integration and unification of Africans and process was carefully designed taking cognizance of national security of the country.
16th March, 2020
Signed
DCI Sunday James pcc
Service Public Relations Officer
For: Comptroller General of Immigration
