Friday February 7, 2025
Garissa (HOL) – Kenyan President William Ruto inaugurated Kenya's 10th immigration office in Garissa County on Thursday, marking a major step in facilitating passport and travel document services for residents of Northern Kenya.
The new office is expected to serve residents from Mandera, Wajir, Tana River, Lamu, Kitui, and Isiolo counties, reducing the need for long and costly trips to Nairobi or other regional offices for immigration services.
Speaking at the event, President Ruto emphasized that the new immigration centre is part of his administration's goal to ensure equitable access to government services for all Kenyans. He noted that reopening the Garissa office fulfills his electoral promise to restore passport printing services in the region, which had been suspended in 2014.
The Garissa office is President Ruto's third such centre, following recent launches in Kericho and Bungoma. Other immigration centres operate in Nairobi, Mombasa, Kisumu, Nakuru, Embu, Eldoret, and Kisii.
The decision to reopen the Garissa office follows Kenya's investment in a modern e-passport management system, which allows the decentralization of passport services while meeting International Civil Aviation Organization (ICAO) security standards. Centralized passport printing was introduced in 2014 to curb forgery and manipulation, but recent technological improvements have enabled a more secure and regionalized approach.
According to Immigration & Citizen Services PS Julius Bitok, reopening the Garissa office and eliminating vetting for national ID card applicants for residents of border counties will promote fairness and equality in access to identity and registration documents.
"Yesterday (Wednesday) in Wajir, the President signed a proclamation vacating vetting for ID cards in North Eastern region and other border counties. With the new Immigration office in Garissa, we believe eligible applicants will flock in big numbers to apply for passports and other services," said PS Bitok.
President Ruto's government aims to leverage the new office to boost social inclusion and access to essential services for marginalized communities in Northern Kenya, promoting regional equity and economic growth.