Nigerians in Canada Commend Tunji-Ojo, Immigration Service Over Passport Intervention
Nigerians living in Canada have commended the Minister of Interior, Dr Olubunmi Tunji-Ojo, the Nigeria Immigration Service (NIS) and the Nigerians in Diaspora Commission (NiDCOM) for the successful completion of a passport intervention programme that served 2,233 applicants across five Canadian provinces.
The intervention was organised as part of the Nigeria Diaspora Economic Conference (NiDEC) in Toronto and ran from August 12 to September 4, 2026.
Passport services were taken directly to Nigerian communities in Toronto, New Brunswick, Manitoba, Saskatoon and Calgary as part of efforts to make passport processing more accessible to Nigerians living outside the country.
The programme was implemented through a partnership involving the Ministry of Interior, NiDCOM, the Nigerian High Commission, NIS, the Nigerian Canadian Association Council of Presidents (NCACP) and local Nigerian Canadian associations.
Several beneficiaries praised the speed of the process, with some reporting that they received their passports between four and seven days after completing biometric capture.
A beneficiary in Manitoba said she received her passport within a week of her biometric registration and expressed appreciation to the officials involved in the exercise. Another applicant said his passport arrived four days after biometric capture, describing the intervention as organised and efficient.
Community stakeholders also commended immigration officers for travelling across the five locations and working extended schedules, including weekends, to attend to applicants.
The NCACP acknowledged the roles played by NiDCOM and the NIS in coordinating the multi-city exercise, saying the collaboration between government agencies and diaspora organisations helped deliver the programme across different communities.
Following the completion of the first phase, Nigerian community leaders in Canada have appealed to the Federal Government to consider another round of the intervention to accommodate Nigerians who were unable to participate in the exercise.
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