Ghana beat the International Civil Aviation Organization’s April 2010 deadline to begin issuing biometric passports and systems with its launch Tuesday of its ECOWAS biometric passport. With its many advantages, the biometric system is set to rid the administration of travel documentation of quack operators and fake documents, as well as expedite applications and facilitate the war against crime. Local security printing giants, Buck Press Limited, the wholly owned Ghanaian limited liability company which supplies security printed materials, IT supplies and consumables as well as office stationery is the company contracted by the Government of Ghana to supply the booklets for the biometric passports. Buck Press will in addition train staff of the Ministry of Foreign Affairs to operate the system as well as maintain the equipment for its operation. The company is presently running a similar programme for the Republic of Liberia. Liberia, Togo, Nigeria, Niger, Guinea, Senegal, Cote d’lvoire and Benin have all come under the biometric regime. At the launch Tuesday, the Minister of Foreign Affairs, Alhaji Mohammed Mumuni asked Ghanaians not to rush into changing their existing passports for the new, biometric form because the old and new passports will run concurrently until November 2015 when the old will be phased out. When the system goes fully operational nationwide, (in a month or two), applicants would be required to purchase application forms at designated banks throughout the country and personally submit them to designated centres in the regions, accompanied with supporting documentation such as birth certificates or existing passports as proof of nationality for onward processing. There will be seven Passport Application Centres in all in six regions - the Passport Office in Accra, Greater Accra Regional Office, Kumasi in the Ashanti Region, Sekondi in the Western Region, Sunyani in the Brong Ahafo Region, Ho in the Volta Region and Tamale in the Northern Region. In the meantime, the Passport Office in Accra is operational and is receiving and processing applications. Buck Press has already submitted 780,000 of the biometric passport booklets, out of 1.5 million copies. The Foreign Affairs Minister had in an earlier media encounter, hinted at the computerization of passport and visa application and issuance processes to offer online services. The International Civil Aviation Organization (ICAO) has enjoined all nations to begin issuing biometric passports by April 2010 to ease the discomforts of the travelling public as a result of varied travel documents issued by many nations, the authentication of which have often proven burdensome for authorities not familiar with such documents. From November 24, 2015, all non biometric passports will cease to be acceptable as valid travel documents. Source: Myjoyonline.com/Ghana