Barely 18 months after its reopening by President William Ruto, the Garissa Regional Immigration Office has processed more than 16,000 passport applications.
The office has emerged as a key service centre for the region and a symbol of the government’s push to bring essential services closer to citizens.
Deputy Officer in Charge Abdi Sheikh Ali said the centre has improved access to passport and other immigration services for residents of Northern Kenya.
The office serves residents from at least six counties, including Garissa, Wajir, Mandera, Tana River and Isiolo.
The Officer in Charge Abdi Sheikh Ali described the development as a major milestone in the government’s efforts to decentralise services and bring them closer to citizens.
“This office was launched by the President on 6th February last year, and it has since dealt with 16,084 passport applicants, of which we have already issued 15,800 passports,” Ali said.
He said applicants are notified through text messages when their passports are ready for collection, adding that “the high number of applications demonstrated the strong demand for immigration services in the region.”
“There was a strong demand for a passport office in this region, and as you can see from the numbers, there is a lot of response from the residents, and they are very happy,” he said.
The reopening of the office has also eased the financial and logistical burden previously faced by residents who had to travel to Nairobi or Mombasa to apply for or collect their passports.
Mrs. Fatuma Bare Mohamed, the difference has been immediate. She collected her passport just five days after submitting her application.
Fatuma said the process was smooth and efficient, thanking the government for bringing the service closer to residents.
“I thank the government for bringing this service close to us. Without this office here, it would have been costly for me to travel to Nairobi with a small baby,” she said.
The office has also introduced measures targeting residents travelling to Saudi Arabia for religious purposes.
Sheikh Hassan Abdi, the Supreme Council of Kenya Muslims (SUPKEM) chairperson for Garissa, said the availability of passport services locally had made it easier for Muslims in the region to undertake Hajj.
He said the immigration office had established a special desk to facilitate applications for people travelling for Hajj and help expedite the process.
“You can’t go for Hajj without a passport, but now our government has brought this office home, close to the people in Garissa. The immigration office here has also set up a special desk for those going for Hajj to hasten the process,” Sheikh Hassan said.
He also welcomed the government’s decision to abolish the vetting process for residents of Northern Kenya seeking national identity cards, noting that access to IDs is essential for obtaining passports and other government services.
North Eastern Regional Commissioner John Otieno said the reopening of the Garissa office was part of the government’s broader commitment to decentralising services and ensuring equal access for Kenyans regardless of where they live.
Otieno said residents were now able to obtain passports within as little as five days, significantly reducing the cost of travelling to Nairobi or Mombasa.
“This office has facilitated the processing of passports; in fact, we have been briefed that people here are getting passports within a span of five days. It has reduced the cost in terms of expenses used to travel; before then, they used to travel to Nairobi or Mombasa to get the passports,” Otieno said.
