South Sudan will no longer accept cash for travel permits

March 9, 2007 (NAIROBI) — The Sudan Relief and Rehabilitation Commission in Nairobi say it will no longer accept cash payments for travel permits to southern Sudan. Payments must now be made by cheque or deposited directly into its bank account in Nairobi.

The SRRC in a press statement said that the new payment procedures will be in effect from the 8th of March. The SRRC liaison officer, Peter Pur, said that the commission changed the payment procedures to improve security, the Sudan Radio Service (SRS).

“SRRC has been issuing the travel permit, but the payment procedure was that those obtaining the document pay cash in to the office, which we feel with the current structure we have it is not good to handle cash in the office. So we feel that for the safety of the office it is good that the money is paid to the bank.” Pur said.

Pur also said that they would not accept personal cheques, but organizational cheques and bankers’ cheques would be accepted.

The SRRC said that travel documents would only take two days to be processed, except in emergency cases.

(SRS)