Government to abolish vetting during ID application

Kenyans can now breathe a sigh of relief after the government announced plans to abolish the National Identification (ID) card vetting process.

President William Ruto announced on Monday, April 8 while attending a Muslim leaders' Iftar dinner at Nairobi's Stae House said that he will soon issue a policy document to ease the ID application process starting next month. 

“Starting next month (May), there will be no vetting for Kenyans who want to get ID cards,” said Ruto.

“I’m going to be issuing a policy document to make sure that we have a mechanism that is similar to other Kenyans so that we don’t discriminate based on religion or region."

The announcement is a relief, especially to applicants from Asian, Arab, and Nubian communities who are not considered ‘indigenous’ communities in Kenya.

Ruto also reiterated that it is discriminatory, noting that the government was amending the guidelines on ID card issuance.

“Every Kenyan should be treated equally. We have changed the old policy," he added.

The president also promised to gazette the Kenya Nubian community as a tribe by December 2024.