It will soon be a crime to be found without a Huduma Card, acquired through a Huduma Namba registration if the new Bill will be signed into law.
The government of Kenya is drafting a Bill that will be presented to parliament and if passed and signed by the President to become law, Huduma Namba will become mandatory.
The current Identification Cards (IDs) will stop being used as legal identification upon the passing of the law and Kenyans will solely introduce themselves using a Huduma Card.
The new Bill is called the Huduma Bill 2019 and is the latest move by government that will see all persons living in Kenya register for Huduma Namba whether they like it or not.
According to the Bill which is already public, the Huduma Namba will serve as proof for identification for all Kenyans and will be used for all the services that currently require the use of an ID Card.
In the Bill, a National Integrated Identify Management System) database will be created and will contain all data collected from Kenyans with each person assigned a unique number.
If the Bill becomes law, the following services will only be issued for those with the Huduma Card:
- Driving license
- Passport
- Getting a new SIM card/mobile number
- To vote
- Pay taxes
- Transact in a bank
- Get electricity connection
- Register a company/NGO
- Open a bank account
- Transact in the financial markets
- Transfer or make any land dealings
- Access healthcare in a public hospital
- Enrol in a public school
- Register your car
- Register a marriage
The First Huduma Drive
During the first Huduma Namba registration, many Kenyans kept off the exercise after concerns emerged over the safety of the data that was being collected.
The government says 36 million Kenyans registered during the first face with the majority of them set to receive Huduma Cards in the next three months.
The government is considering plans to role out another registration exercise to capture those Kenyans who did not take part in the first exercise.