Kenya targets Feb. 2024 for new digital ID rollout, sign-up optional

The Kenyan government says it plans to register all citizens for a new digital ID program by the end of this year, and the new digital ID cards will be issued from at least February 2024.

The country’s Cabinet Secretary for Information, Communication and Digital Economy, Eliud Owalo, made the announcement recently as he unveiled the government’s one-year status report on its digital transformation exploits, The Standard reports.

According to Owalo, it will be up to Kenyans to choose whether they want to sign up to the digital ID program or not. However, the government’s objective, he said, is to ensure that citizens have easy access to public and private sector services, even from the comfort of their homes.

The Huduma Namba digital ID, which the new system seeks to replace, was compulsory.

“We will not force any Kenyan to take a digital identity. No, the onus will be on you to decide whether or not you want to get government services through your digital identity based on your bio-data or you want to physically visit government offices,” the news outlet quotes the cabinet secretary as saying.

He explained that Kenya is rolling out the new ID system in line with the experience taped from countries such as Belgium, Estonia and Pakistan, where similar projects have been successfully implemented.

Owalo said although scepticism may arise partly as a result of the bitter experience from the controversial Huduma Namba ID project, “we believe that we can leverage on skills, competencies, and capabilities within Kenyans themselves and undertake these programs.”

He also gave assurances that the government is making sure funds are not spent carelessly on the project.

The new digital ID project is part of a mega digital transformation plan which recently saw the digitization of 5,000 government services, accessible via a digital government platform launched recently by President William Ruto.

Owalo said there are plans to digitize 9,000 more services under the plan, NTV Kenya reports.

With the new system, government officials will also be able to use a digital signature platform to sign official documents even while away from their duty posts, Owalo added.

“The digital ID system we are talking about is not the same like the Huduma Namba,” Owalo emphasizes.

The status report chronicles what the government has been able to do so far in terms of the digital transformation drive, as well as the road still ahead to be covered.

Article Topics

Africa  |  biometrics  |  digital government  |  digital ID  |  government services  |  Kenya