The Mobile Consular Services (MCS) which will help Kenyan expatriates to acquire basic documents kicked off at the Kenyan embassy in Doha Wednesday, a statement said.
The Kenyan ambassador to Qatar Boniface Mwilu has urged Kenyans who still do not have the new generation passports and Kenyan national identification cards to make use of this service which will conclude on July 2, 2023.
The four-day exercise is being facilitated by the State Department for Diaspora Affairs spearheaded by the director of Diaspora and Consular Affairs at Kenya's Ministry of Foreign Affairs and Diaspora Affairs ambassador Washington Oloo.
The services to be offered will include applications of new passports and identification cards, renewal of old generation passports and identification cards, and issuance of birth certificates. Other services will include the replacement of lost and mutilated identification cards as well as change of particulars.
Speaking at the launch of the service on Tuesday, ambassador Mwilu thanked the State Department for Diaspora Affairs for bringing a delegation to Qatar from Nairobi.
He said: “We want to urge Kenyans in Qatar to make use of this service because it has been brought closer to them. The government of Kenya has put this service in place to ensure that Kenyans in Diaspora have basic documents and make sure that their documents are up-to-date.”
The envoy said that there are many Kenyans who still hold the old generation passports, and this would be a great opportunity for them to acquire the new one.
The old generation passport (dark blue) was phased out and Kenyans can apply for the East African Community (EAC) biometric e-passport during this exercise. The envoy said the exercise targets 60,000 Kenyans across Qatar.
So far, the exercise has taken place in Oman, UAE, US, Canada, and Australia, and currently it is going on in Ireland, New Zealand and Cuba.
For the passport application, one needs to fill an online application form at the eCitizen portal and provide the payment invoice to the officials. The applicant will also need a copy of Kenyan identification card, original and copy of the passport bio data page, copies of parents’ identification cards as well as two passport size photographs on a white background.
To apply for the new generation identification card, one will need to provide a copy of the old generation identification card and passport copy.
The exercise will take place at the embassy until Friday morning. On Friday afternoon, the exercise will take place at Holiday Inn. On Saturday, the exercise will take place at the Asian City in Industrial Area. There will be buses ferrying Kenyans to the venues. The exercise will conclude on Sunday mid-day, the statement added.