The Nigeria Immigration Service (NIS) has announced plans to introduce a Single Travel Emergency Passport (STEP), a new biometric travel document designed to assist Nigerians abroad whose passports are expired, lost, or stolen, enabling them to return home safely and verifiably.
The Comptroller-General of Immigration, Kemi Nanna Nandap, made this known during the Joint Thematic Meeting of the Khartoum, Rabat, and Niamey Processes held in Abuja, which Nigeria co-hosted with the Government of France.
According to a statement issued on Wednesday by the Service Public Relations Officer, ACI Akinsola Akinlabi, the new document will replace the current Emergency Travel Certificate (ETC) as part of the Service’s ongoing reforms to strengthen identity management and border governance in line with global best practices.
Nandap explained that the STEP will serve as a temporary travel document for Nigerians stranded abroad, allowing them to return home through a secure and verifiable system.
“The travel document will be issued at designated Nigerian embassies and consulates abroad and will be valid for a single entry,” she said. “This reinforces the Service’s commitment to efficient service delivery and robust identity protection.”
The high-level meeting brought together key stakeholders in migration management, including representatives from the National Commission for Refugees, Migrants and Internally Displaced Persons, NAPTIP, ECOWAS, African Union (AU), European Union (EU), and several African and European countries.
Discussions focused on strengthening regional collaboration to combat migrant smuggling and human trafficking, with an emphasis on prevention, protection, and prosecution across migration routes.
Delivering her keynote address titled “Insights on Prevention and Protection as Strategic Pillars to Effective Law Enforcement and Prosecution Responses,” Nandap outlined the NIS’s broader reform agenda, which includes enhancing migration management systems, improving international cooperation, and building institutional capacity.
The Comptroller-General reaffirmed Nigeria’s commitment to active participation in regional and global migration dialogues, noting that the NIS will continue to align its policies and operations with international standards to ensure safe, orderly, and regular migration across borders.
