Nairobi — Plans are underway for the pilot phase of the Maisha Number and the digital ID ecosystem following the adoption of the regulations on the registration of persons, births and deaths.
Immigration and Citizen Services Principal Secretary Julius Bitok said Thursday the trials aim to resolve possible gaps before the official launch across the country.
He said the government is ready to roll out the pilot phase of the program to test the system to ensure that the whole process goes on smoothly.
"The government has decided to start doing a pilot so that we can be able to correct all the issues if any before we do an official launch," he told reporters after meeting religious leaders from different denominations in Nairobi.
He pointed out that the government will soon communicate the date of the official rollout once everything is ready.
During the meeting, the religious leaders endorsed the proposed registration system.
Public participation
According to Bitok the government has so far conducted a total of 699 public participation forums in all 378 sub-counties to sensitize the public on the new digital ID system.
The Immigrations PS said that the government is keen to listen to every idea and opinion for the
He further disclosed that the program we run for close to 24 months.
On September 29, the government postponed the planned launch of Kenya's Digital ID platform dubbed the Maisha Number initially slated for October 2.
"We wish to inform the public that the and all stakeholders that due to unavoidable circumstances, the official launch of the Maisha number and the digital ID ecosystem that was to be presided over by his excellency, the President William Ruto on October 2nd has been postponed," Bitok announced.
The State Department of Immigration and Citizen Services had earlier set the launch date on September 12 following a meeting of the Principal Secretaries' (PSs) Sub-Committee of the National Digital Identity Technical Committee.
President William Ruto was expected to preside over the launch at the Athletics Club in Nakuru County.
Digitized ID
Set to gradually replace the current national IDs, the digitized identification will virtually incorporate all personal detailed identifier data including Birth Certificate, death certificate, Maisha card as well as driver's license among others.
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The PS noted that newborn children will be assigned a distinct number that will serve as their birth certificate number and later as an identification number for all government services, including, registration of death.
Bitok emphasized that the Maisha Number will feature a Machine-Readable Zone, conforming to International Civil Aviation Organization (ICAO) standards.
This enhancement according to PS Bitok distinguishes the Maisha Card from its predecessor, the Huduma Card, which marked an attempt to digitize identity under former President Uhuru Kenyatta's regime.
The comprehensive rollout of the project has been estimated to take a transition period of 2 to 3 years.
