The PNG Immigration and Citizenship Authority’s operation at the Jacksons International airport, has been given a timely boost, with the donation of two new Travel Document verifiers by the UN Migration Agency of International Organization for Migration.
The new equipment will effectively process travelers’ documents to combat identity and passport fraud.
A system developed and introduced by IOM, the verifier travel document and bearer will help border control officers to conduct secondary passport inspections efficiently.
IOM PNG Chief of Mission, Lance Bonneau, said the software program and the verifier is very quick, very efficient.
“It takes only 10 seconds of time to make a verification, which means that the flow of travelers entering Papua New Guinea will not be interrupted or disrupted in the Immigration processing and that Immigration can very quickly and efficiently assure that the traveler presenting the passport is the person entering the country,” Bonneau said.
With APEC leaders meet next month, it will help detect imposters and at the same time prevent security threats posed by the large number of travelers moving in and out of the country.
Chief Migration Officer, Solomon Kantha, said the new system gives CIA an added capacity.
“A boost to our security capability to be able to ensure that persons who pass through our borders during that period can also be checked,” he said.
PNGICA staff have undergone training on the system, also aimed at combating transnational organized crimes.
“PNG is the first country in the Pacific region to have this system, this capability and I believe the 17th of the 16 countries that already have that capability,” Kantha added.