Only 10 per cent of Huduma Namba cards have been collected by residents of the Bomet Central sub-county despite receiving messages alerts informing them to pick the cards, said the County Registrar.
The National Integrated Identity Systems (NIIMS) simply known as Huduma Namba was a project preceded by the government in 2019 and was billed as a single source of the personal identity for Kenyans and individuals residing in Kenya.
Speaking at his office, the county Registrar Officer Mr Jones Kenanda said they have received a consignment of Huduma Cards in two batches from Nairobi and even though they have informed members of the public, they have failed to collect them.
“The government has so far distributed two batches of Huduma Numbers to Bomet Central Sub-County, the first one arrived here a month ago while the second lot arrived last month,” said Kenanda.
He added, “The moment we receive these cards we scan the barcode, instructions asking residents to collect their card is relayed immediately to the corresponding mobile numbers used during the registration process.”
However, the county registrar noted that some of the challenges they are facing have been attributed to Covid-19 restrictions that halted the free movement of people.
Kenanda noted that his office is coming up with mobile centres within his sub-county to bring their services close to the public to hasten the collection process.
Ms Betrice Koech, a senior Clerk Officer issuing the cards in Bomet Central National registration Bureau noted that some individuals might have issued different mobile numbers during registration making it impossible for them to receive instructions notifying them to collect the cards.
Koech also added, “Another challenge we have here is that some people might have registered within this Sub-County and since have moved to other location making it hard for them to come for their cards.”
The government had stated early that, the issuance of Huduma Numbers will eventually phase out the use of National Identification Cards currently used by Kenyans.
By Lamech Arisa and Joseph Obwocha
