Over 520,000 national IDs remain uncollected as Government steps up collection drive

A growing pile of national identity cards sitting uncollected in government offices has hit over half a million, exposing a gap between issuance and actual pickup even as production continues to rise across the country.

Figures from the Department of Immigration and Citizen Services show that 520,000 IDs are currently awaiting collection, up from 460,000 recorded in March.

The 60,000 jump within two months has prompted fresh government efforts to push applicants to retrieve their documents.

Immigration and Citizen Services Principal Secretary Belio Kipsang told Parliament that while the rollout of ID issuance has been accelerated, many Kenyans who complete the registration process are not returning to collect their cards.

Kwale Woman Representative Fatuma Masito questioned what steps have been put in place to ensure the documents reach the rightful owners instead of remaining uncollected for long periods.

In response, Kipsang said the government has stepped up engagement with local administration officers to trace and remind applicants to collect their IDs.

“As of today, we have 520,000 IDs that have been processed but not collected. We have been going across the country sensitising our officers, mainly national government administrative officers, starting with chiefs, assistant chiefs and other stakeholders, including village elders,” Kipsang said.

“This way, we can ensure that these Kenyans who have gone out, given their biometrics, provided their details and fulfilled all the requirements needed to obtain an ID, collect their documents.”

He added that the government is also trying to link the importance of identification documents to access to services and economic activities in order to improve uptake.

According to him, 1.5 million IDs were issued between January and May this year, with projections showing that more than three million could be issued by the end of the year. He further noted that since the improved system was introduced, about 34.9 million IDs have been issued nationwide.

Out of these, 4.1 million have gone to first-time applicants in the past two and a half years, while nearly 1.6 million were processed within the last six months alone. He also pointed out that issuance between January and May this year stood at 1.5 million, compared to 1.95 million during the same period last year.

The government is now hoping that intensified sensitisation through local administrators will help clear the growing backlog of uncollected identity cards.