The Kenyan government is embarking on a significant initiative, allocating a budget of Sh1 billion to introduce digital identification cards to its citizens.
The initiative, known as the Unique Personal Identifier (UPI), will be christened the “Maisha Number,” serving as a lifelong and exclusive identification number assigned to individuals right from birth and eventually becoming their primary identification credential.
The Permanent Secretary of Immigration, Julius Bitok shared insights into the government’s plans for this groundbreaking transition.
He emphasized the importance of providing Kenyans with ample time to adjust to the new digital IDs.
“We will establish a clear timeline to facilitate a smooth transition,” he affirmed.
Initially, there will be a transition period spanning two to three years to enable Kenyans to migrate seamlessly to the Maisha Number system.
Mr Bitok further elaborated that individuals applying for IDs upon reaching the mandatory age of eighteen and those seeking replacements will be issued the Maisha Card starting at the end of the current month.
The registration process for the Unique Personal Identifier is scheduled to commence on September 29, 2023. Simultaneously, the government will begin phasing out the existing second-generation ID cards.
Regarding the replacement process, Mr Bitok revealed, “For those requiring replacements, approximately 1.5 million replacement cards are issued annually. These replacements will now be in the form of the Maisha Card. Furthermore, for new registrations, we anticipate approximately 1.5 million individuals coming of age from the end of this month, and they will be issued the Maisha Card.”
While digital identification systems are relatively uncommon in Kenya, they have gained traction globally.
Estonia, in particular, has successfully implemented digital IDs, with a staggering 98% of its population using the system.
This global trend towards digital IDs was highlighted at a recent G20 meeting, where Europe showed increasing interest in such systems.
Ursula von der Leyen, the head of the European Union, urged world leaders to adopt digital IDs worldwide by 2030, signalling a potential shift towards this innovative form of identification on a global scale.
