The Bangladesh embassy in Manama on Friday became the 30th overseas mission of Bangladesh to have e-passport service available for expatriates.

Bangladesh Ambassador to Bahrain Nazrul Islam yesterday said this while chairing a ceremony marking the launching of the e-passport programme at the Bangladesh Embassy in Bahrain.

The ceremony was also attended by, among others, Bangladeshi expatriates and government officials, the mission said in a Facebook post yesterday.

Faisal Ahmed, joint secretary of the Security Services Division of the Home Ministry, said the service is also available at 72 passport offices in Bangladesh.

Attending the ceremony as chief guest, Faisal Ahmed said under the government's e-passport project, e-gates have been installed at three international airports of Bangladesh and Benapole land-port.

The government launched the e-passport programme and automated border control (ABC) management in January 2020, aiming to modernise the immigration process and enhance the acceptability of the Bangladesh passport.

The e-passports add a layer of security to traditional passports by embedding an electronic chip that stores the information visible on page 2 of the passport and a digital security feature. The chip also contains the photo, fingerprint and iris data of the passport holder, according to the Department of Immigration and Passports.

On the other hand, e-gates are designed to automatically complete the immigration formalities, minimising human interactions.