The Nigerian Government has announced plans to introduce a Single Travel Emergency Passport (STEP) to replace the existing Emergency Travel Certificate (ETC) for Nigerians abroad.
Comptroller General of the Nigeria Immigration Service (NIS), Kemi Nanna Nandap, disclosed this at the Joint Thematic Meeting of the Khartoum, Rabat, and Niamey Processes, organised and co-hosted by Nigeria in collaboration with the Government of France.
According to a statement by the Service’s spokesman, ACI Akinsola Akinlabi, on Wednesday, Nandap explained that the forthcoming STEP would serve as a temporary travel document for Nigerians overseas whose passports are expired, lost, or stolen. The document, she said, would enable affected citizens to return home safely and securely.
She added that the travel document would be issued at designated Nigerian embassies and consulates abroad and valid only for a single entry. The initiative, she noted, reinforces the Service’s commitment to efficient service delivery and robust identity protection.
The introduction of STEP forms part of ongoing reforms within the NIS aimed at strengthening identity management and border governance frameworks in line with global best practices.
The high-level meeting brought together key stakeholders in migration management, including the National Commission for Refugees, Migrants and Internally Displaced Persons (NCFRMI), the National Agency for the Prohibition of Trafficking in Persons (NAPTIP), representatives from ECOWAS, the African Union (AU), the European Union (EU), as well as officials from African and European countries.
The meeting, according to the NIS, sought to reinforce coordinated prevention, protection, and prosecution responses to migrant smuggling and trafficking in persons across African and European migration routes. It also served as a platform for sharing best practices, aligning legal frameworks, and strengthening inter-agency cooperation.
Delivering her keynote address titled “Insights on Prevention and Protection as Strategic Pillars to Effective Law Enforcement and Prosecution Responses: The Nigeria Immigration Service Perspective,” Nandap highlighted the Service’s reform agenda, which focuses on combating migrant smuggling and human trafficking through enhanced border governance, improved migration management systems, capacity building, and international collaboration.
She reaffirmed Nigeria’s commitment to regional and global migration dialogues, stressing that the Nigeria Immigration Service will continue to align its operations with international standards to promote safe, orderly, and regular migration.
