Kenya’s State Department of Immigration and Citizen Services says that its efforts to advance the Maisha digital ID project led to the clearing of a backlog of more than 600,000 ID cards in the course of 2024.
The Department says its multifaceted efforts led to the National Registration Bureau (NRB) printing over 1.7 million ID cards, while its digital government strategy took a major step ahead with the digitization of millions of personal records.
Kenya, it would be recalled, faced major challenges in the course of 2024 to give traction to the new Maisha Namba system introduced as a replacement for the Huduma Namba.
Among the major hurdles were the legal challenges the system faced with the Kenya High Court issuing injections and later lifting them, which eventually hampered its plan to issued at least three million ID cards before the end of the year.
These challenges notwithstanding, the Interior Ministry felt neither intimidated nor discouraged. Rather, it undertook a proactive and innovative approach aimed at ensuring the effective rollout of the Maisha Namba digital ID which the government says is extremely important for access to public and private sector services.
While the State Department took measures to clear the backlog of ID cards and other identity documents such as birth certificates, driver’s licenses and passports, other steps were also initiated to facilitate application for and access to these documents. These steps included the expansion of NRB services and the opening of dozens more local offices to better serve the population.
Other efforts to improve the quality of ID services in the course of the year included the acquisition of a printer in order to meet the daily demand for ID cards which was estimated at 8,000 as of mid-2024. Bitok also promised then that there had a plan to bring in another machine which can produce around 25,000-30,000 cards per day.
In November, the Principal Secretary for Immigration and Citizen Services, Prof Julius Bitok, boasted during an exchange with the Public Accounts Committee of the National Assembly that the reforms they had introduced were paying off.
He noted that thanks to the expediency plan they introduced, passports were now being issued within seven days for normal procedure and 24 hours for emergency applications, while ID cards can be processed and printed within a period of 10 days.
The official also mentioned efforts by the Department to digitize the country’s civil registration process, revealing that more than 90 percent of birth registration applications were now done online.
Despite the challenges, the Maisha Namba digital ID project has been described as a welcome initiative which puts Kenya fittingly on the rails of digital transformation.
A case study by Aratek about the ID describes it as one that ushers in a new identity management ecosystem for Kenya. It explains the pillars which support the Maisha Namba ecosystem, important features of the ID card, its significance for Kenyan citizens, how the registration process works and a comparative look at the evolution of Kenya’s legal identity system pre- and post-independence.
Civil Registration Services office celebrates “notable progress”
Meanwhile, in a message to Kenyans on December 31, the Civil Registration Services (CRS) office said the year 2024 was one of “notable progress” in efforts to take civil registration to everyone who requires it.
In a message on its Facebook page, the government organization said among other successes, it was able to extend its reach through the opening of new offices countrywide, roll out the Unique Personal Identifier (UPI), improvement of registration and systems, and legislative reforms.
“CRS also recognizes the role our partners play in supporting our work and the various initiatives geared towards the realization of registration of all births and deaths occurring in Kenya. As 2025 draws nigh, CRS remains committed to our customers and endeavours to always serve you better,” the body said.
