In a press release, the SME clarifies that the process of "granting a normal passport" involves the use of "a set of consumables not produced in the country, acquired from a supplier in the foreign market upon payment of foreign exchange".
According to the state agency, the real cost of the passport "is still significantly subsidized by the State, together with the difficult economic situation that the country is going through", the institution recorded a "slow reduction in the amount of consumables in stock for financial reasons".
After "several months of efforts" made to change the aforementioned framework, explains the SME, "the disastrous impact of covid-19 on the production capacity of companies and on revenue collection, even aggravated the possibility of dealing with priority cases ".
"There are, at the moment, no technical conditions for issuing passports", reads the document made public this Thursday.
The SME, which says that the note appears to "clarify the reasons underlying the constraints found" and prevent "other types of interpretation", ensures that "diligences are underway with higher authorities to address the constraints".
The Angolan passport-issuing entity, assigned to the Ministry of Interior, "also regrets the embarrassment caused, calls for calm and reiterates its commitment to do everything to overcome the problems in question."
Earlier this month, the parliament approved the draft Angolan Passport Law, which provides for an electronic device with the introduction of a chip with biographical data, and on the Regime for the Exit and Entry of National Citizens.
