Techno Brain still supplying passports

Minister of Homeland Security Jean Sendeza has said government will have a new supplier of passport booklets and printing consumables by December, meaning that Techno Brain remains the supplier.

Addressing a press conference in Lilongwe yesterday, she said although government terminated its contract with Techno Brain last year, the company continues supplying the passport booklets until a new service provider is engaged.

Said Sendeza: “We are looking for a company that will provide the service at a much lower cost to allow Malawians to pay less for their passports as compared to how much they are paying for the same currently. By December, we should have finalised the processes and identified a new supplier.”

She said following a critical shortage of the booklets at the Department of Immigration  and Citizenship Services, which falls under her ministry, Techno Brain supplied 23 000 copies of passport booklets on August 19 which have since been distributed across the country for passport printing.

Sendeza said the new passport booklets will help to reduce the backlog of passport applications that the Department of Immigration has had for some time.

In a separate interview, Attorney General Thabo Chakaka-Nyirenda said government is finalising the procurement processes, adding that what is remaining is a technical evaluation which he is confident will not take long.

He is on record as having said government would prefer a local firm to take over but in the event that a foreign firm wins the bid, it has to partner with a local firm.

Out of 13 companies that expressed interest to supply passports, eight are Malawian firms.

Chakaka-Nyirenda said by having a new firm to render this service, government is expected to save about $26 million.

He said: “The scope of the new contract to be signed with the new firm is going to change where we are saying that the new firm is going to adopt the system that was developed and was being used by Techno Brain. In fact Techno Brain has already agreed to this arrangement.”

Chakaka-Nyirenda added that the contract with Techno Brain remains terminated and the services are based on unfulfilled contractual obligations.

In October 2021, the AG announced that government was terminating the controversial $60.8 million Techno Brain passport deal for the supply of 800 000 passports.

Techno Brain pegged each passport at $76 but in the Southern African Development Community region, a passport copy ranges from $25 to $60.

Malawians pay K90 000 (about $1009) for an ordinary 36-page passport.