Plans to roll out new upward prices for the processes of acquiring passports in the country are in the offing.

Presenting a defence for this new move by the government, a Deputy Minister of Foreign Affairs, Kwaku Ampratwum-Sarpong, is necessary to be able to continue giving Ghanaians the best of services they desire.

Speaking at a press conference to address issues regarding passports and consular services under the ministry, he explained that in comparison, Ghana’s rates are way lower than other countries in the sub-region.

He explained that this is beyond the fact that the same supplier provides passports for all these other countries.

“… and even Togo; $40. Supplied by the same supplier who is supplying us with these passports. Ghanaian charges, we charge $8, meaning we are having to subsidize every passport. So, the money to buy the passports is being used to subsidize the passports for Kwaku Manu. Until Kwaku Manu is prepared to pay the realistic passport fees, we will continue to have these problems,” he explained.

Kwaku Ampratwum-Sarpong further detailed how there are plans to also upgrade the types of passports being used in Ghana.

He added that if this is done, it will automatically come with price increments.

“And also, we are thinking of upgrading our passport from the biometric to the chip-embedded. So, the chip-embedded is going to cost more and if we continue sitting at the $8, we’ll continue to have the problems that we are having at the passport office, not what has been done by the officers over there. So, we have to brace ourselves, and when the discussions start, we’ll all have to get the picture that we need to pay the realistic fees to get the kind of service we are expecting,” he explained.

Meanwhile, here’s exactly how much you currently need to pay to get a passport in Ghana:

The recent unannounced visit of the Minister of Foreign Affairs and Regional Integration, Shirley Ayorkor Botchwey, to the Passport Office in Accra has resurrected discussions on what it should cost citizens to get their passports.

Fuming at the fact that there were people within the office who had made it a personal duty to overprice and extort unsuspecting applicants, the minister sacked some staff members who had been seconded to the Passport Office.

Those sacked were said to have been involved in corrupt practices, reports have said.

“Reports that officers, and there are nine or so agencies represented in any passport application centre… these people are involved in illegal activities, and when I say illegal activities, we know just two days ago the report in Daily Guide that the issue of goro people involved in our passport acquisition process has become rife. It is wrong.

“How can 100 Ghana for standard service of passport acquisition and 150 for expedited service be bumped up to 2,000 and 3,000? I hear they don’t even charge 2,000 now; they are charging 3000 and it is wrong.

“But I can say and we all will agree that a goro person is outside the passport office and they need somebody inside to work with, they cannot do it on their own, people are paying 2,000, 3,000 to acquire a passport, why should this be so?” she said.

TWI NEWS

What you actually need to pay to get a passport:

Although the Minister of Foreign Affairs and Regional Integration, Shirley Ayorkor Botchwey, spoke about what charges that applicants for passports have to pay, GhanaWeb has gone further to make some checks from the official website of the ministry.

On the ‘Passports’ section of the ministry website, it indicates the specific amounts that must be paid for the passports, including details on the application types, passport application centres, and sample documents.

Under the Application Types, for instance, the available types of passports advertised, and their corresponding fees, are: expedited application 48 pages at GH¢200; expedited application 32 pages at GH¢150, standard application 32 pages at GH¢100, and standard application 48 pages at GH¢150.

The page also details all the locations of passport offices across the country.

See the lists below:

Also, below is information on What you need to apply for the passport:

1. Birth Certificate(Proof of Ghanaian citizenship)

2. Documents to support Identity such as Driver’s Licence, National ID card

3. Proof of Profession (An introductory letter from the applicant’s employer that is if the applicant is currently employed or a work ID card that bears applicant’s name, organisation’s name and position. A student ID if the applicant is currently in school. Homemakers/housewives and applicants that are unemployed and those in the non-formal sector of employment like mechanics, hairdressers seamstresses, traders etc. do not need proof. Registered Business Owners and self-employed applicants must produce their business registration certificate as proof)

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