Kigali Airport gets ultra-modern electronic gates

Two ultra-modern electronic gates have been installed at the Kigali International Airport (KIA). The electronic gates, now in the testing phase, were set up by the Directorate General of Immigration and Emigration.The gates, known as Automated Passenger Clearance System (APCS), will allow self service immigration clearance of passengers, according to officials.The Directorate’s Communication Officer, Ange Sebutege, confirmed the two doors have already been installed at the arrival hall, and are ready for testing before launch. They will be used to clear arriving passengers automatically without passing through the normal immigration booths. Nationals will have their passports scanned to open the first gate, while the second opens by use of finger print recognition.“The new automated passenger clearance system is efficient as it takes about just 12 seconds to clear a passenger compared to 45-60 seconds for the normal procedure,” said the Immigration IT Engineer Eric Byukusenge, who is also in charge of the installation of the new system. The introduction of the APCS is in line with the need to further improve service delivery and the directorate’s commitment to the use of ICT in service delivery, he explained. The system will accelerate passenger clearance and reduce queues on arrival at the airport. It is also a means of efficiently managing space at the airport which is important due to the increase of passengers and airlines using the relatively small facility, according to officials.The two e-gates can now be used for testing which will take about three weeks before being put to use. Holders of Rwanda Passports or Laissez-Passer arriving at the airport are encouraged to do trial runs as part of testing because it will help in finalising the system. “It will take less than three minutes of enrolment for a Rwandan holding a valid Passport/Laissez-Passer and ID for the person to do the trial run,” said Byukusenge. The Directorate, last year, emerged as the best institution in use of ICT-enabled services. During the Intego award, the Immigration emerged the best in e-Government solution category. In 2009, the Immigration Department scooped the prestigious African Association for Public Administration and Management (AAPAM) award.The award was in recognition of its innovative Online Visa Application project.