The Nubian Rights Forum has called on the government of Kenya to listen to public concerns and centre human rights in its new ‘Unique Personal Identifier’ (UPI) system expected to be rolled out in July.

Development Diaries reports that the UPI is set to replace the system National Integrated Identity Management System (NIIMS), also known as the Hiduma Namba, which will serve as a child’s primary and secondary school identification numbers.

The UPI will have multi-faceted utility, serving as the child’s National Health Insurance Fund (NHIF) number, the National Social Security Fund (NSSF) number, driving licence number, and ultimately, and even their death certificate number.

This integration aims to make the digital ID a central and unifying identifier for various essential aspects of a Kenyan’s life.

It is understood that the NIIMS identification system has been marred by court cases and distrust from Kenyans as the state failed to fully explain the merit of the system.

In a statement by the forum of civil society organisations (CSOs), the group highlighted the possible inequalities that could arise from the execution of the roll-out exercise.

‘Lessons from Huduma Namba rollout show that if not done right, implementing digital ID systems produces further inequalities for minority and historically marginalised communities’, the statement read.

The group also said that the introduction of UPI could worsen inequities for communities that cannot access birth certificates or IDs due to barriers like discrimination, distance, cost, and corruption.

They further called on the government to take its time in ensuring the new system improves on the failings of the previous attempt.

Photo source: AMISON