Germany Embassy in Kenya faces visa processing disruption

By Robert Mutasi 

The German Embassy in Kenya said on Wednesday, October 2, 2024, that a critical failure of the IT systems is massively disrupting its consular and visa services. 

The embassy explained through its verified X account that because of the power outage, coupled with failure in backup systems, it was critically impaired to process all the applications.

The statement reads, "As of now, we can't issue any visas. No applications can be processed."

They further heard concerns from applicants who were to travel, saying they were aware of the situation and were working toward finding a solution as soon as possible. 

"We are calling applicants with imminent travel plans. We are working hard to resolve the issue ASAP," added the embassy.

This is at a time when the Embassy has been receiving increasing visa applications, particularly for students, business travelers, and tourists who want to visit Germany. 

Hundreds of applications are usually processed daily at the embassy's visa processing center. The sudden halt of operations has thrown applicants into limbo.

While the Embassy is yet to provide an exact timeline when the issue will be fully addressed, they did assure the people that efforts are on to restore services. 

The German Embassy in Nairobi coordinates with technical teams to address power and IT-related challenges to restore normal operations at the consular and visa sections.

It is not the first time technical failure has caused a disruption to embassies.

 In 2015, a similar worldwide breakdown knocked the U.S. Department of State's consular system and briefly disrupted visa issuances globally in embassies relying on advanced IT infrastructure to process voluminous flow of highly sensitive applications.

Meanwhile, the German Embassy has called on applicants to check for the latest information from official sources and to desist from visiting the embassy until notice is given that the systems are restored. 

It also urged people applying for urgent visas, particularly at short travel notice, to make contingency arrangements as the embassy strives to resolve the outage.

Since Germany is one of the favorite destinations among Kenyan travelers, the issue at hand needs urgent attention by the embassy so that normal functioning can resume with minimal inconvenience to the travelers.