By Patricia Mollyne Mataga
Residents of four western Kenya counties will no longer be travelling to Eldoret or Kisumu for passport and work permit processing.
This is after President William Ruto opened an immigration office in Bungoma town on Friday.
According to the President, the office will serve locals within Bungoma, Trans Nzoia, Vihiga, Kakamega and Busia counties.
In a post on his verified social media pages, Ruto said the opening of Bungoma immigration office is part of his administration’s efforts to devolved the services.
The move, the Head of State said, ensures no Kenyan incurs huge costs when seeking the crucial documents
“We are devolving immigration services such as the issuance of passports and work permits to ensure that Kenyans do not incur unnecessary costs to acquire essential documents,” Ruto said in a post on his X handle.
“In Bungoma Town, commissioned the Bungoma Immigration Office that will also serve Vihiga, Kakamega, Busia, and Trans-Nzoia Counties,” he added.
Bungoma now becomes the latest town to have an immigration office after Kericho which was opened last year.
The Kericho immigration offices was launched ahead of the town hosting the 2023 Jamhuri Day celebrations.
Other major towns with immigration offices include the headquarters in Nairobi, Kisumu, Mombasa and Eldoret.
Coincidentally, Bungoma town also gets the office at a time it is set to also host a national celebration – Madaraka Day.
The office is part of the goodies that come with hosting a national holiday.
Already, the government has renovated the Kanduyi Stadium that will be hosting the event as well as a airstrip in the town