The Nigeria Immigration Service (NIS) and the Nigeria Civil Aviation Authority (NCAA) have agreed to use the Advance Passenger Information system (API) as a single-window border policy to ease the clearance of passengers at the country’s international airports.
Comptroller General of Immigration, Muhammad Babandede and the Director-General of NCAA, Captain Musa Nuhu, Thursday, said the move is expected to remove undue bureaucracy and bottlenecks associated with multiple clearances by several agencies for passengers and to enable the agencies to track passengers mobility, through the API which is a major tool for getting information about a passenger before arrival into the country for effective border control and management.
A statement signed by the public relations officer of the NIS, Sunday James in Abuja said the move is in line with international best practice and the United Nations (UN), resolution 2396 supported by the International Civil Aviation Organization (ICAO), which encourages governments to deploy the API for standard collection and gathering of data of International travellers.
He said a single-window border operation will facilitate ease and seamless passenger clearance without compromising national security at the International airports through the deployment of the advance technology, API, combined with the Migration Information Data Analysis System (MIDAS) operated by the NIS at the airport for collection of information and control of entry, which is the best international practices globally.
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