07/05/2026
JUBA - Directorate of Civil Registry, Nationality, Passport and Immigration says it has introduced new technology aimed at reducing long delays in the processing of passports and national identity documents.
Director General Maj. Gen. Elia Costa Faustino said the directorate has received five advanced production machines, two for passports and three for national identity cards, along with 100 mobile registration kits to be deployed across the states.
According to the directorate, the upgraded system will digitally connect state offices with headquarters in Juba, allowing faster transmission of data and enabling some services to be processed locally.
Faustino said shortages of passport materials have eased, with 100,000 nationality cards already delivered and additional passport booklets expected soon. He added that a large portion of the backlog built up over the past year has now been cleared, with applicants expected to receive documents within one or two days.
“If people observe now, the number of people here has reduced because everybody who processes his document, either nationality or passport, receives it after one or two days,” Faustino told reporters on Thursday.
Despite the improvements, the directorate said unreliable electricity supply in Juba continues to affect efforts to operate the machines around the clock.
Current fees remain at 15,000 South Sudanese pounds for nationality certificates and 100 U.S. dollars for ordinary passports, although officials said the prices could change under the upcoming national budget.
The Ministry says the upgrade is part of broader efforts to modernise and decentralise civil registration services across the country.