Kenyans urged to collect smart driving licenses, number plates

Transport Cabinet Secretary Kipchumba Murkomen has urged Kenyan citizens who have applied for smart driving licenses to promptly collect them from the National Transport and Safety Authority (NTSA).

This plea comes amidst reports of a significant backlog, with a staggering 52,192 smart driving licenses currently lying uncollected at various agency offices.

On Tuesday, after an impromptu visit to the NTSA offices in Nairobi, the CS mentioned that 41,827 number plates and 235,229 logbooks are awaiting collection by their owners.

"I want to thank Kenyans for their patience, and I urge those who have not yet collected their number plates, driving licenses, and logbooks to do so. The services offered by the Authority are essential, and many Kenyans are being inconvenienced, not because of a lack of services but due to failure to collect their documents after completing the processes," Murkomen emphasised.

Despite the migration of services to eCitizen, delays have persisted, affecting public access to essential documents.

“Today I met with the agency and the eCitizen team to discuss the issues that have affected the services provided to the public. We have resolved to accelerate the pace of migration and strengthen the team responsible for service migration by including personnel from the ICT Authority,” he added.

President William Ruto's directive for ministries and state departments to migrate to the government’s online single payment platform, eCitizen, underscores the government's commitment to digitising services.

The executive order mandated the termination of non-designated payment platforms, with a deadline set for August 8, 2023.

The introduction of new-generation number plates with enhanced security features demonstrates the government's commitment to combating crime. These plates, unveiled in August 2022, feature imprinted national flags, holograms, and watermarks