KUWAIT CITY, March 22: The Pakistan Embassy in Kuwait on Tuesday formally started issuing the Machine Readable Passports (MRP) to Pakistani citizens. The launching ceremony was attended by the representatives of the Pakistani community and officials of the embassy.
Speaking on the occasion, Ambassador of Pakistan to Kuwait Iftekhar Aziz termed the launching of MRP as a big achievement as it met a long term demand of the large Pakistani community residing in Kuwait. He said the ground work for the facility had started a couple of years ago and the Prime Minister of Pakistan Syed Yousuf Raza Gilani, during his recent visit to Kuwait had issued special instructions to expedite the process.
The Ambassador also appreciated the support of the Pakistani community in this regard. He said that latest technology and highly skilled professional staff had been dedicated for this purpose. He underscored the need to create greater awareness on the advantages of having the computerized passports and asked the audience to spread the message to the members of the community as well. He said the issuance of manual passports will continue until all the Pakistani citizens get their computerized national identity cards.
The audience was briefed on the requirements and the procedure involved in applying for the computerized passports. They were informed that Computerized National Identity Card (CNIC) or National Identity Card for Overseas Pakistanis (NICOP) along with the previous passport will be required to apply for the MRP.
In case of children under 18, the copy of their mother and father’s passports and CNIC/NICOP would also be required. The applicant will be first required to submit the necessary fee after which he would be issued a token. This will be followed by scanning of thumb and finger impressions. Each applicant will be photographed at the spot and his particulars will go into a centralized data base. The computerized passports will be issued only after verification of biometrics (fingerprints) and data of the applicant.
The audience welcomed the new initiative and appreciated the role of Pakistan Embassy in making this possible.