The Ministry of Foreign Affair is to establish four centres throughout the country to facilitate the issuance of passports, to relieve the pressure on the headquarters of the Passport Office.

This is part of measures aimed at decentralising the issuance of passports, which is very high on the agenda of the ministry. The Passport Office issued 54,870 passports in the first quarter of this year, an average of 4,500 passports a week, the ministry said in written answers to a questionnaire submitted by the Ghana News Agency.

The statement said to obtain a passport was not difficult except that the processing of applications was being temporarily delayed due to the deterioration of the passport issuing machines.

The ministry explained that: "The state of the equipment has been the main obstacle to the processing of applications. There are currently only two machines serving the whole country."

The statement said under the circumstances, applications were being Processed between six and eight weeks but gave the assurance that the situation would change for the better in the next few days.

The ministry hinted that: "The Passport Office has imported nine new machines that have already arrived at the Kotoka International Airport, awaiting clearance. As soon as this is done by next week, the delays will be reduced to the minimum."

The statement admitted that middlemen were still involved in the insurance of passports but said this was "at a reduced level."

The Ministry promised that: "The installation of the new equipment, which will enable the office to issue passports at a faster rate, coupled with the introduction of another window, which will expressly process applications at a higher fee for desirous applicants, will make the middlemen redundant."