Staff Reporter
Government through the Ministry of Home Affairs and Cultural Heritage has officially launched the e-passport services in Chitungwiza district the first of its kind at that level countrywide.
Speaking during the official launch of e-passport bio-enrolment centre in Chitungwiza district today, the Permanent Secretary for Home Affairs and Cultural Heritage, Aaron Nhepera hailed that district for being the first district to benefit from the rollout program.
“The e-passport was officially launched by His Excellency the President of the Republic of Zimbabwe Dr E.D Mnangagwaon 14 December 2021. Suffice to underscore that Chitungwiza has again scored a first in my Ministry`s drive to cascade the issuance of e-passports to district offices, the Ministry of Home Affairs and Cultural Heritage, through the Civil Registry Department, has brought e-passport services to Chitungwiza district in recognition of its position as the third largest urban settlement in the country in terms of population size.
“The availability of this service to Chitungwiza is bound to benefit surrounding communities, including Stoneridge, Hopley, Seke, Mahusekwa and Beatrice, among others,” said Nhepera.
In his remarks, the Registrar General, Henry Machiri reiterated President Mnangagwa`s call for all citizens to be registered.
“In Zimbabwe, birth registration is compulsory, and it is mandatory for everyone to be registered. To ensure that every citizen and non-citizen in the country is registered, the Department has come up with various measures to enhance civil registrations through decentralization and computerization of services to keep abreast with modern technological advancement,” said Machiri.
The Registrar General said, “Services can now be accessed within reasonable time irrespective of one`s geographical location. All mandatory vital civil registration documents that is, birth certificates, death certificates and national identity documents are issued at these offices.”
Machiri added, “The cascading of e-passport services to District will go a long way in decongesting Harare Passport Office.”
Meanwhile, the rollout of e-passports to district levels dovetails well with President Mnangagwa’s mantra of leaving no one and no place behind in terms of development.
The launch is also in line with the National Development Strategy1’s (NDS1) objective of modernizing the economy using ICT and digital technology to fulfill the nation’s Vision 2030 of attaining an Upper Middle-Income Society.
