The Bureau of Immigration (BI) on Wednesday, Nov. 15, expressed its gratitude to the Department of Justice (DOJ) and the Senate for the approval of its P2.7 billion budget for 2024.
“We wish to thank DOJ Secretary Jesus Crispin Remulla for pushing for the approval of our budget and the Senate for considering the BI's modernization projects to improve operations," Commissioner Norman Tansingco said in a statement.
“Majority of the budget is intended for the modernization of the BI’s operations, particularly at the airports,” Tansingco said.
He said the bureau plans “to digitize airport operations by procuring additional electronic gates to be deployed at both the arrival and departure areas.”
The use of electronic gates "would greatly decongest the immigration area as it could lessen processing time to as low as eight seconds per person,” he said.
Part of the budget will also be used for “the procurement of body camera systems initially for secondary inspectors assigned at the Ninoy Aquino International Airport, as well as other provincial international airports and the Zamboanga International Seaport,” Tansingco said.
“Apart from major digitization projects, the BI also aims to beef up its cybersecurity tools to better protect its data,” he also said.