Here’s what you need to know:
- System Back Online: After weeks of technical difficulties, the e-passport system is finally operational. This comes after a cyberattack that caused the initial shutdown.
- Reduced Fees: As a gesture of goodwill for the inconvenience caused, the government has slashed the processing fee for ordinary e-passports with a 10-day turnaround time. The new fee is K50,000, down from the previous K90,000.
- Gradual Rollout: Passport printing will begin in Lilongwe this week and expand to other regions shortly after. The Immigration Department encourages applicants to check for updates on regional availability.
- Appreciation for Patience: The department extends its gratitude to Malawians for their patience during the system recovery process. A dedicated team of local experts worked tirelessly to meet the president’s deadline for restoration.
Statement from the Immigration Department
The statement signed by the Immigration department’s director general Charles Kalumo says passport will resume gradually this week starting and later on in the region like we mentioned above, below is his direct quote.
“We would like to thank all concerned Malawians for their patience during the time the e-passport issuance system was being fixed by a team of local experts from various entities who worked around the clock to complete the task within the timeframe by His Excellency the president,” says Kalumo.
In January, the Department of Immigration blamed technical issues with printing passports in Malawi. In January,. Weeks later, in a surprising announcement, President Chakwera revealed a cyberattack was the reason behind the shutdown.
Going Forward, what do we think?
With that said, we think the government of Malawi should engage with the top ICT companies and personals inside and outside of the Government, meaning it MUST engage with industry professionals like those who work at SPARC Systems for example to help prevent this from happening again. We also heard MACRA was called on to assist with getting the system online. When it comes to anything digital and sensitive, a collaboration effort is always the best to do things.