The minister of foreign affairs, Yusuf Tuggar, has said that Nigeria is committed to prioritising identity verification on consular services to bolster its new visa regime.

Mr Tuggar disclosed this on Thursday in Abuja during a pitch presentation by ASFAAR, a visa and tour company, aimed at easing visa processing for Nigerians.

President Bola Tinubu recently directed all federal agencies involved in consular and immigration matters to strictly comply with Nigeria’s international visa commitments.

This follows the adjustments in visa issuance policies being implemented by the U.S. government and the United Arab Emirates.

The federal government aims to enhance intergovernmental collaboration in verifying the identities of citizens applying for visas and other consular services abroad through the policy.

According to the minister, such policies affect Nigerian travellers, hence, there is the need for dependable access to visa applicants’ identity records.

Mr Tuggar said, “The federal government’s policy, in collaboration with ASFAAR and Council on Biometric Data Verification Policy, is aimed at protecting the integrity of our citizens.

“The policy is in securing the visa application process and facilitating seamless travel, while safeguarding the sovereignty of all involved nations, which enjoys full inter-agency backing.

“The objective is to eliminate identity fraud and ensure that only genuinely vetted Nigerian applicants are issued visas over embassies and high commissions.”

He explained that this would also discourage the use of unauthorised third-party agents, who obtain and handle sensitive personal data outside government oversight, posing grave national and international security risks.

Mr Tuggar added that this would enhance mutual accountability by allowing countries with a destination to verify applicants in real time, using Nigeria’s National Identification Number, as the primary reference point.

The minister said the technology was a verified platform operating under the ASFAAR system that was fully compliant with Nigerian data protection laws and global best practices.

He said that it would interface directly with Nigeria’s national identity infrastructure and validate the authenticity of an applicant’s information, encourage missions to work out modalities of assurance and visa refund policies.

“This is not merely a domestic regulation, it is a cooperative tool for mutual benefit. It will help embassies to process legitimate applications faster and reduce risks of visa applications.

“It will not only ensure Nigerians travelling abroad do so responsibly, legally and with dignity, but enhance security for all stakeholders by limiting overstays, trafficking, impersonation and visa abuse,” he said.

The chairman/CEO, ASFAAR, Jamil Hausawi, said the initiative would strengthen outboard travel management, reinforce visa integrity and enhance bilateral cooperation between Nigeria and friendly countries.

According to him, such is based on cooperative infrastructure created with the ministry of foreign affairs to support transparency, efficiency and verification of Nigerian travellers going abroad.

“ASFAARI is not meant to replace consular procedures, but to support and enhance them.

“It is to provide secured access to verified applicant data, send real-time alerts and confirm identity use and biometrics,” he said.

He stressed that the U.S. Government officially communicated the new visa rules affecting Nigerian nationals as part of its global visa reciprocity review based on two key concerns.

These, he said, included high rates of visa overstay by Nigerians, and for more dependable access to applicants’ identity records.

He promised that ASFAAR would work in full compliance with Nigerian laws by ensuring that visa applicants’ data privacy and protection partnered relevant government and diplomatic missions to achieve set targets.

The event attracted participants from the ministry of aviation, Nigerian Immigration Service (NIS), and diplomats, among others.

 (NAN)