Busia County official now wants applicants for National Identity cards to urgently collect their documents at the registrar of persons to access national services on the E-citizen platform.
With over 4000 IDs remaining unclaimed, hindering residents from exercising their rights and participating in Kenya’s digital future. Local leaders and the community are encouraged to support this initiative.
Speaking to the press Busia county commissioner Chaunga Mwachaunga noted that despite National Government Administration Officers in the county making deliberate efforts to ensure the IDs reach their respective applicants within the shortest time possible, majority of applicants are yet to collect their IDs.
“As a government, we are going an extra mile to ensure no Kenyan misses government services as a result of delayed ID. It’s disheartening to see IDs yet to be collected,” noted Chaunga.
The revelation came less than a week after a few residents who spoke to KNA expressed their frustrations as a result of the long duration it takes for them to receive their ID documents.
At the regional level, Kakamega County has the highest number of uncollected national identity cards in Western, official data from the National Registration Bureau shows.
Kakamega has 7,965 national identification documents which are yet to be collected by applicants.
It is closely followed by Bungoma which boasts 7,145 uncollected national IDs with Busia ranking third at 4,008.
Vihiga is positioned fourth with 2,388 uncollected identity cards, bringing the total number of uncollected IDs in Western to 21,506.
The county commissioner urged residents to visit their respective National Registration Bureau offices at the sub-county level or Huduma Centres in Busia, Bungoma, Kakamega, and Vihiga.
In November 2023, the Interior Ministry attempted to introduce a Ksh1,000 fee for Kenyans applying for IDs and also Ksh2,000 for those seeking to replace the cards.
Following an uproar from Kenyans, the Interior Ministry reduced the cost of replacing an ID to Ksh1,000 and Ksh300 for new applications. These charges were, however, halted by the court pending the determination of a petition filed against them.
Delays in the production of IDs is mostly brought by logistical challenges including printing machine breakdown, inadequate printing material as well as delays occasioned by thorough background checks, particularly for border counties.
In Kenya, IDs remain a vital document needed to access e-citizen services including services of the Directorate of Criminal Investigations, Kenya Revenue Authority, Kenya Transport and Safety Authority, Immigration services, business registration, registration of marriages, and services from the Higher Education Loans Board.
