‘NIIMS roll-out to go on as planned,’ says Matiang’i after Senate suspended project

Interior Cabinet Secretary Fred Matiang’i has revealed that the National Integrated Identity Management System (NIMS) rollout is still on course even after the Senate suspended the registration exercise until further notice.

Matiang’i, who is in-charge of delivery of all National Government projects, said the roll-out will go on as planned in all the 10,000 sub locations across the country on March 15, 2019.

He said that the biometric kitty has been procured and the assistant chiefs and those trained to carry out the exercise in the respective jurisdictions are ready.

“We have completed the pilot phase… we will roll out the NIIMS project on schedule and as planned,” said Dr. Matiang’i.

Though he did not talk about the Senate suspension of the project, the CS alluded to cases filed in court over the project that has proved contentious.

“I know there are issues that have been raised in court and we will go there and explain ourselves and I am confident that we will be fine,” he added.

The decision to temporarily halt the exercise was decided after Matiang’i and ICT CS Joe Mucheru failed to appear before the council on Wednesday and instead sent their Cabinet Administrative Secretaries.

The National Integrated Identity Management System (NIIMS) is set to capture a person’s data: age, gender, level of education, marital status, place of residence, source of livelihood and others.

The program has since been launched Nairobi, Uasin Gishu, Kajiado, Baringo, Marsabit, Kisii, Wajir, Kilifi, Tana River Embu, Makueni, Busia, Nyandarua and Kiambu counties.

Every Kenyan will be given a Huduma Namba that uniquely identifies them. Foreigners will also be registered in the exercise and be expected to record reasons for being in the country.