The government spokesperson Isaac Mwaura has revealed a grand plan to end the current delays experienced in the issuance of passports.
In the plan, the government hopes to issue one million passports and three million identity cards. This comes following the procurement of two new passport printing machines that have already been delivered for installation at Nyayo House.
According to Mwaura, the new passports target is nearly double the 533,000 issued in 2023 with the higher output pegged on the combined printing capacity of 600 passports per hour by the new machines. The installation of the new machines is expected to reduce the waiting time for issuing passports to less than 14 working days.
"The government will double the number of passports it targets to issue this year to at least one million while giving three million digital national IDs during the same period. The new targets are part of an ambitious drive to make it easier for Kenyans to access registration documents.
"In the same period, the government hopes to issue 1.2 million digital National ID cards to first-time applicants and 1.6 million duplicate IDs to build on to the 733,000 Maisha cards it has issued so far," Mwaura said in a statement.
The former nominated senator added that these are realistic targets based on the strategic improvements and investments that have been made to the vital personal registration and documentation systems.
"Also targeted for a major boost in generated revenue is the issuance of electronic Travel Authorisation (eTA) that replaced entry visas to the country with the government hoping for at least five million visitors.
"President William Ruto abolished all visas as a requirement to visit Kenya from January this year," he added.
The new machines will be commissioned in the coming week and the government's belief is that it will help reduce the delays experienced in the issuance of passports.
New offices
New offices to issue passports will also be opened in some major towns across the country.
"To decentralise access to passports, permits and other services, the Directorate of Immigration will also open new offices in Nyeri, Bungoma and Garissa and invest in government-owned passport and border management systems to provide real-time data on the entry and exit of all travellers," the statement concluded.
Meanwhile, the government hopes to raise the revenue generated from its services which is collected on the eCitizen digital platform to a daily average of Ksh1 billion over one year.
