CS Kindiki to launch new digital IDs similar to the aborted Huduma Namba

 

CS Kithure Kindiki on Digital IDs

According to Kithure Kindiki, Cabinet Secretary of Interior and Administration of the National Government, Kenya is getting ready to roll out digital identification cards for the next generation, similar to the Huduma Namba cards.

According to Kindiki, the new identification cards will have a machine-readable chip in addition to a QR code and will facilitate authentication through the Internet.

The identification system in Kenya was only semi-automatic. It has been brought to Kindiki's attention that in the not-too-distant future, "we are looking into updating our present automated fingerprint identification system into an automated biometric identification system that includes iris and face recognition in addition to the fingerprint."

"We are moving in the direction of a digital ID system that will allow web-based ID authentication, which will eventually result in an electronic ID with a QR code that is readable by machines. 

"Eventually, this will develop into a unique personal identification number that will serve as their ID."

The Huduma Namba card that the previous administration established is almost exactly the same as the new document that Kindiki is introducing.

The Huduma Namba card was guaranteed to be the official government-issued document for the purposes of identifying oneself and carrying out transactions.

Utilisation of the Huduma Namba

Under the defunct National Integrated Identity Management System (NIIMS), Huduma Namba would have served as the primary database from which all personal information on residents of the nation, including that connected to voter registration, taxes, and social services, would have been compiled.

Huduma Namba was also intended to serve as the database from which the National Integrated Identity Management System (NIIMS) would have been developed.

Under the Huduma Namba programme, an individual would have been required to hand over their identification number in order to make use of the universal health care services, receive benefits from the government housing programme, enrol in a public educational institution, pay taxes, transact business on the financial markets, open a bank account, or gain access to social protection services.