Online Reporter
Remember Deketeke
Herald Correspondent
For Dr Joram Gumbo, Special Adviser to the President on Monitoring the Implementation of Government Programmes and Projects, the memory of long winding queues at the passport office is etched in the minds of many Zimbabweans of a certain generation.
“I still remember when we used to be at the offices around eight or nine in the evening just to be able to be served first the following morning,” he recalls, the frustration still tangible in his voice.
Back in 2007, and for years after, getting a passport was less about paperwork and more about endurance. It was an ordeal that tested the patience and resilience of citizens. People would wake up long before dawn, clutch their documents, and travel to the few passport offices that were then centralised in major cities like Harare and Bulawayo.
The pavements outside these offices would slowly transform into overnight waiting bays, dotted with people carrying blankets, snacks, and a lot of patience — hopeful applicants determined to secure an early spot in the queue.
The journey was not only exhausting; it could also be risky. There were stories of robbery, transport challenges, and at times, the heartbreak of returning home empty-handed.
Queues were often controlled by so-called agents or cartels who demanded a fee to “assist” applicants to jump the line. The situation became so glaring that in 2021, Home Affairs and Cultural Heritage Minister Kazembe Kazembe made an impromptu visit to the Makombe Passport Office and personally experienced the rot. He was asked to pay a US$30 bribe to skip the queue — a moment that laid bare the depth of corruption in the system.
But coming early was no guarantee. “You could continue coming and you would still not be served, mainly because these services were highly centralised,” Dr Gumbo said after visiting the passport offices in Harare on Wednesday. For many families, the process meant taking time off work, missing school, or spending extra money on transport and accommodation in big cities where passport offices were located.
To truly appreciate the magnitude of this transformation, one must look back even further — to a time when holding a travel document from this part of the world was an even more complex affair. The story of Zimbabwean travel documents is, in many ways, the story of Zimbabwe itself — a journey from isolation to global integration.
Fast forward to today, and the contrast is so striking it feels like a different world entirely. What once took days, sometimes weeks, can now be completed in about 15 minutes, depending on the weather of the day.
The difference, as Dr Gumbo now observes with relief and appreciation, “is clear for everyone to see.
The system is now efficient and orderly. You do not have to sleep outside offices anymore.”
This transformation is the fruit of a deliberate and spirited drive by the Second Republic, anchored in the national devolution agenda and the mantra: “Leaving no one and no place behind”.
Passport services, once confined to a handful of urban centres, have since been decentralised to 10 provincial offices, 63 district offices, and 206 sub-district offices across the country.
The impact on ordinary lives has been profound. In places like Hwange, the change is nothing short of life-changing.
“The process of acquiring a passport is now cheap for us, and the process of obtaining a passport is now smooth,” one resident told ZBC News. Another added: “We thank the Government for opening passport offices in Hwange. Everyone who needs these documents can access them easily.” Chief Hwange, Mr Amos Chipaya, captured the historical progression beautifully:
“We used to travel as far as Bulawayo for passports. Then came Lupane, and now we have Hwange, which is commendable.”
This cascading effect of development means that even people from remote areas like Binga, Kamativi, and Victoria Falls now have access to services that were once distant dreams.
But decentralisation is only half the story. The introduction of the e-passport in January 2022 marked a quantum leap in both security and efficiency. The new passports feature advanced security measures compliant with international standards, incorporating biometric data and enhanced encryption features that make tampering or duplication extremely difficult.
Dr Gumbo emphasised the significance of this upgrade: “It goes without mentioning that this programme is a fortress for our national integrity. The old machine-readable passport was vulnerable. The new e-passport is embedded with advanced security features that meet the highest international standards.”
The numbers tell their own impressive story. Since the programme’s launch, nearly 1.8 million electronic passports have been issued nationwide, with the Harare Passport Centre alone accounting for 897,042 of these. The previous backlog of nearly 172,000 applications that once caused six-month waits has been cleared. Now, processing time has been slashed to just seven working days.
For Zimbabweans who grew up hearing horror stories about passport acquisition, the new reality is almost surreal. Ms Tariro Moyo, a Glen View resident, shared her pleasantly surprising experience:
“I had prepared myself for the worst because of the stories we grew up hearing. But I was in and out in no time. The process was smooth and the officials were professional, and the interesting part is I only waited for seven days and a text came saying I should come and collect my passport.”
Mr Brian Ncube spoke to the economic impact of decentralisation:
“Before, we had to travel to Harare’s CBD and sometimes make more than one trip. That meant extra bus fares and lost business days. Now I can access the service closer to home. It has made things easier for us.”
University student Ms Rumbidzai Chikore described the new e-passport facility as “modern and organised. You can see that the system is now digital. Things move faster, and there is transparency. You do not see those chaotic queues anymore.”
For Mr Shepherd Dube of Chiredzi, the reforms have restored something precious: dignity. “It used to feel like a struggle just to get a national document. But digitalisation has brought accountability. The system speaks for itself; it does not favour anyone.”
Perhaps the most heartwarming aspect of this revolution is that it does not stop at Zimbabwe’s borders. Recognising that the diaspora community plays a crucial role in national development, the Government has extended e-passport services to Zimbabweans abroad.
Plans are underway to open new offices in London and Botswana before the end of the year.
The new diplomatic mission in the United Kingdom will house an e-passport office, bringing convenience to the large Zimbabwean community there. This expansion means that whether in Johannesburg, London, or soon in Botswana, Zimbabweans far from home can access the same efficient services as those at home.
At the Gwanda Civil Registry, the biometric e-passport system has been particularly welcomed by diasporans returning home during peak periods. Gone are the days when they had to sleep outside registry offices. The system integrates photography, fingerprint capture, and document verification within the registry, eliminating the need to seek services elsewhere.
One beneficiary, Enoch Ncube, highlighted another thoughtful innovation — the acceptance of foreign currency, particularly the rand.
“It did not take me an hour from the back to here. I think the major masterstroke is the fact that they now accept rands because sometimes we get vexed by the exchange rates outside, but with the money we are used to, we can work. In summary, I can say this is better now than what it used to be.”
The modernisation of passport services is more than a convenience — it is a cornerstone of Zimbabwe’s ambitious Vision 2030, which seeks to create an efficient, inclusive, and technology-driven public service system as the nation aspires to attain upper-middle-income status.
Registrar-General Mr Henry Machiri captured the momentum when he noted: “The steady increase in processed applications demonstrates improved production capacity and growing public confidence in the new system.”
What once felt like a stressful rite of passage has gradually transformed into a straightforward administrative process. The journey from those desperate overnight queues outside Makombe to the sleek, digital efficiency of today’s e‑passport system represents more than just improved service delivery — it signals a nation that is finally working for its people. For people like Dr Gumbo, and for millions of Zimbabweans who remember the old ways, this transformation is a source of national pride — proof that with vision and commitment, a system can be rebuilt to serve, rather than frustrate, the people it exists for.
