Serious constitutional and financial questions have re-emerged regarding Sierra Leone’s passport production arrangement, focusing attention on transparency and lawful procedure.
The Government’s 2013 agreement with Netpage (SL) Limited, working alongside HID CID Limited, was ratified by Parliament in accordance with Section 105 of the 1991 Constitution, giving it full legal effect. The approved contract did not include any royalty payments, even as passport costs rose substantially.
Years later, Audit Service Sierra Leone reported possible unpaid royalties linked to a Contract Change Note, estimating outstanding sums of roughly USD 1.1 million for 2022 and 2023. The matter went before Parliament’s Public Accounts Committee.
Investigations suggested that after the contract expired in 2023, authorities renewed and amended it for another five-year period without Cabinet endorsement or parliamentary ratification.
PAC Chairman Hon. Ibrahim Tawa Conteh confirmed in February 2025 that the revised agreement had not followed constitutional approval procedures. He cautioned that enforcing royalty payments under such an arrangement could itself violate the Constitution. The Committee recommended revising the contract to secure better revenue and submitting it properly for parliamentary approval.
Meanwhile, a 2021 Ministry of Finance directive instructed Netpage to begin paying royalties between 6% and 10% on e-passports — provisions never contained in the original parliamentary-approved agreement.
This raises a constitutional dilemma. If Parliament must approve agreements for them to be valid, then renewed or amended contracts also require approval. Without it, the arrangement may lack legal standing.
The passport remains one of the state’s most sensitive sovereign instruments. Ensuring its production is governed by a lawful, transparent contract is therefore essential. Sierra Leoneans are entitled to know whether the current arrangement is valid and whether government revenue and constitutional safeguards have been protected.