The Bangladesh Embassy in Addis Ababa, Ethiopia, has officially launched e-Passport services. As a result, Bangladeshi resident in Ethiopia, Sudan, South Sudan, and Burundi can now apply for e-Passports with a validity of 5 or 10 years.
The e-Passport service was inaugurated by Mission Ambassador Air Vice Marshal Sitwat Nayeem on Thursday (December 4) afternoon, local time. During the event, delivery slips for e-Passport applications were handed over to three applicants.
Deputy Project Director of the e-Passport and Automated Border Control Management Project, Lieutenant Colonel Mohammad Manjur-I-Elahi, Director (Administration and Finance) of the Passport Directorate, Shihab Uddin Khan, and Deputy Secretary of the Ministry of Home Affairs, Anwar Parvez, were present at the event.
Among others, Lt. Col. Manjur-I-Elahi emphasised the importance of proper use of e-Passports to ensure technological advancement, security, and service quality.
In his inaugural address, Air Vice Marshal Sitwat Nayeem stated that the introduction of e-Passport services would further simplify the immigration process for expatriate Bangladeshis living in Ethiopia and the three neighbouring countries – Sudan, South Sudan, and Burundi. This would enhance the dignity of citizens. The state-of-the-art technology of e-Passports will enhance Bangladesh's acceptance worldwide, and many countries will be interested in signing visa waiver agreements.
In his speech, the Ambassador paid deep respect to the martyrs of the mass uprising of students and people in July-August 2024 and also remembered the heroic freedom fighters of the Great Liberation War with reverence.
The Ambassador thanked the Passport Directorate and project stakeholders for launching e-Passport services at the Addis Ababa Mission as the 68th foreign Bangladesh Mission to do so. He also called upon expatriates to further brighten the country's image through collective efforts.
dbtech/JGN/EK
