The Chairman of the Foreign Affairs Committee, Andy Appiah Kubi says parliament’s Subsidiary Legislation collectively agreed to the increment in the passport fees.
Mr. Appiah Kubi highlighted consensus among members, emphasizing the adjustment aimed to cover associated costs, not for profit. The move ensures cost recovery for booklet, printing, and administrative services, prioritizing financial sustainability while facilitating essential passport services.
“At the committee meeting all of us agreed to this proposition and recommended to the ministry to implement the fee of 500 Ghana cedis, not one person opposed it.
This is the work of the Subsidiary Legislation Committee. It never occurred at the committee meeting that there was protestation as to recommendation for review, so it was a unanimous decision taken by the committee.
We brought our report to the house and it was adopted by the house and we recommended that it must pass under L.I 2481, which is Fees and Charges Regulations,” he told journalists on behalf of the Majority caucus in parliament in Accra on Wednesday.
Andy Appiah Kubi, MP for Asante Akim North, asserted that the subsidy of passport fees by 400 Ghana Cedis should not solely benefit the 20% of Ghanaians who require passports for travel, as it is not equitable.
The Ministry of Foreign Affairs and Regional Integration announced the hike in passport fees, effective from Monday, April 1, which has sparked widespread public disapproval.
“We agree that it is only about 20% of Ghanaians that need passports to travel out of the country. And therefore, looking at it from that context, the passports then become a privilege, not a right or need. So, if it is a privilege, who should bear the cost of passports? To be honest with you, within the subregion, passports in Ghana are the cheapest and indeed it is incomparable with anywhere else.”
“The most immediate cost element is from Liberia, and they are charging GH499.50, which is the equivalent of $50 for passports that span for five years…Indeed how fair will it be for only 20% of us to surcharge all of us, the 80% for what they want for their purpose of travelling? It is not fair,” he stated.
Meanwhile, the Deputy Foreign Affairs Minister, Kwaku Ampratwum-Sarpong said the move to increase the passport fee was not “punitive” rather it is in line with realistic market rates.
He also indicated that the Passport Office receives over 5,000 applications daily and already there are over 70,000 backlog passport applications that are pending.
The Ranking Member of Parliament’s Foreign Affairs Committee, Samuel Okudzeto Ablakwa, has strongly criticized the Foreign Affairs Ministry for the recent hike in passport fees.
Mr. Ablakwa described the increase as unconscionable and insensitive to the Ghanaian people.
The Foreign Affairs Ministry recently adjusted the fees for passport applications, raising them from GH¢100 to GH¢500 for the 32-page booklet and to GH¢644 for the 48-page booklet under the standard service, effective Monday, April 1.
For expedited service, applicants will now pay GH¢700 for a 32-page booklet and GH¢800 for a 48-page booklet.
By Eugene Davis
