Zimbabweans in South Africa Welcome e-passport application process in Johannesburg
Zimbabweans living in South Africa have applauded the introduction of an e-passport application process at the Zimbabwean consulate in Johannesburg.
In May, Zimbabwe’s Home Affairs secretary Raphael Faranisi announced that the training of consular staff to process passport applications had commenced at the embassy in Pretoria. This development is set to ease the burden on Zimbabweans, who previously had to travel back to their home country to renew their passports, often leading to overstaying their visas in South Africa.
Ngqabutho Mabhena, the chairperson of the Zimbabwe Community in South Africa, welcomed the commencement of the e-passport acquisition at the Johannesburg consulate, located at LIA Boeing Road West in Bedfordview.
“The Zimbabwe Community in SA welcomes this long-awaited process which should ease the passport application process,” he said.
The new facility will make the documents more accessible to the over one million Zimbabweans who have migrated to the neighboring country in search of better economic opportunities.
The cost of an ordinary e-passport is set at US$150 or its equivalent in the rand, with an additional US$20 charge for a passport with a QR code.
Mabhena further stated that the facility will begin with a system trial run from June 21, and interested parties can contact the consulate through its various communication channels to participate in the trial.
Faranisi also revealed that the government hopes to provide passport issuing services in the United Kingdom, the United Arab Emirates, and the United States, in addition to South Africa, to cater to the large Zimbabwean diaspora community.
