A clearer path to the Green Passport

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Read History Go to My Account Log Out Enhanced by Google Opinion A clearer path to the green passport There is a particular kind of loneliness in loving and investing in a country that has not yet found a

Listen to this article Share There is a particular kind of loneliness in loving and investing in a country that has not yet found a way to formally claim you.

For many years, I have raised the difficulty of becoming a Nigerian citizen by naturalization, in private conversations, on panels, and in public commentary. I have done so not out of grievance, but because Nigeria matters to me. I was born here. Took my first breaths here. Learned to talk (first in Hausa) here. Took my first steps here. As an adult, I have built my career here, in energy access, in impact investing, and in backing Nigerian entrepreneurs. I also raised my four sons here – second generation Nigerians but there was still no clear path to citizenship. I have written a history of Nigerian football. My commitments, my friendships, and much of my sense of home are rooted in this country.

So it is with genuine encouragement that I write today about something that has changed for the better.

Nigeria’s path to citizenship by naturalization has long been one of the most demanding in the world. Section 27 of the 1999 Constitution sets a high bar: an applicant must be of good character, show a clear intention to remain domiciled in Nigeria, be acceptable to the local community where they live, be able to contribute to the country’s advancement, speak one of the major local languages (other than English), and have lived in Nigeria for at least fifteen years. Even when every condition is met, the certificate is not issued by an official or a tribunal. It is granted at the discretion of the President after initial approvals by your Local Government chairman, traditional ruler, and state governor. Being born in Nigeria made no difference.

High standards are not the problem. Many countries ask a great deal of those who wish to join them, and rightly so. Citizenship should mean something. The problem has been opacity. For most applicants, it was unclear where to apply, what documents were required, how long the process would take, who was reviewing the file, or what happened to it once it left the Ministry. Applications could sit for years with no feedback. Outcomes arrived, if they arrived at all, without explanation.

In practice, the process rewarded those who knew someone, and quietly discouraged everyone else.

I know this not from theory but from experience. I applied, and my application was denied – even the opening of a file was denied.

A refusal is hard enough. What made it worse was what came after. There was no clear explanation of why, no indication of what could be corrected, and no obvious route back in. I did not know which office to approach, or whether I was even permitted to try again. Friends and colleagues who had been through the process offered advice, but much of it contradicted the rest. The common thread was an unpredictable and onerous path. The rules, as far as anyone could tell, lived in people’s memories rather than on paper.

I was not alone. Over the years I have met many people in the same position: men and women who have spent decades in Nigeria, raised families here, built businesses, paid taxes, and contributed to their communities, yet remain foreigners in the eyes of the law. Some gave up. Others never started, because they could not find where to begin.

That is why recent developments at the Federal Ministry of Interior deserve recognition. Its Citizenship and Business Department now runs an online portal where applicants can create an account and begin the naturalization process: candb.interior.gov.ng. Alongside it, the Department has published clear guidelines on what an application requires.

This may look like a modest administrative change. It is not. A published list of requirements tells applicants what is expected before they invest years of effort. A single, official starting point removes the guesswork about where to go. A structured digital process creates a record, and a record creates accountability. For the first time in my experience, someone who is eligible can sit down, read the rules, and begin, without needing to know the right person.

This fits a wider pattern of reform at the Ministry, which has invested in digitizing services such as passport applications. Making naturalization part of that effort signals that the government sees it as a public service owed to eligible residents, not a favour to be dispensed.

Why this matters beyond individual applicants

It would be easy to treat naturalization as a niche concern affecting a small number of people. That would be a mistake. Countries that compete successfully for talent and capital make it possible for committed people to belong. Many of those who seek Nigerian citizenship are not passing through. They are teachers, doctors, engineers, investors, and entrepreneurs who chose Nigeria long ago and stayed. Some were born here to non-Nigerian parents and have known no other home. Giving them a credible path to citizenship deepens their stake in the country, and the country’s claim on their loyalty and contribution.

There is also a message in it for everyone watching. Investors, development partners, and the diaspora read signals about how predictable a government is. A process that is transparent, rules-based, and documented says that Nigeria can run institutions that work as written. That signal reaches well beyond the citizenship office. And there is the question of identity. Nigeria is a nation built from many peoples. Being Nigerian has always been about more than descent; it is about commitment to this place and its people. A clearer path for Nigerians of non-Nigerian descent affirms that idea.

A portal is a beginning, not an end. Its real test will be what happens after an application is submitted. Three things would build on this progress. I will be watching closely how the process works in practice as I submit my application, and I hope others who have struggled with the naturalization process in the past will share their experiences, constructively, so it can keep improving.

For now, I want to say plainly: thank you. To the Federal Government, to the Minister of Interior, and to the officials of the Citizenship and Business Department who built this, you have taken a meaningful step. For those of us who already consider Nigeria home, the road to the green passport is still long. But for the first time in a long while, it is a road we can see.

Dr. Wiebe Boer, Chief Growth Officer of the JIPA Network, member, BusinessDay Editorial Advisory Board