The Cabinet Secretary for Interior and National Administration, Kipchumba Murkomen, has officially launched a mass registration of persons exercise in West Pokot County.
This marks a major push by the government to enhance access to national Identity Cards (IDs) among historically marginalised pastoralist communities.
Speaking during the launch at Kapenguria, CS Murkomen said the exercise would be conducted concurrently in West Pokot, Turkana and Elgeyo Marakwet counties as part of a wider government strategy to close long-standing gaps in civil registration across pastoralist regions.
He noted that for many years, communities in these areas have faced significant challenges accessing registration services, leaving thousands without national identity cards and, consequently, unable to benefit from essential government services.
“This exercise is extremely important because pastoralist communities have, for far too long, been marginalised in access to registration services. As a result, many citizens are unable to access basic government services such as medical cover under SHA, housing programmes, and other social services,” Murkomen said.
The CS explained that the lack of proper documentation has also hampered national planning efforts, particularly in the health and education sectors, as well as excluded elderly citizens from government payment programmes due to the absence of official documents.
To address these challenges, Murkomen announced that the Ministry has rolled out a Rapid Results Initiative targeting pastoralist areas in the North Rift, northeastern Kenya and parts of the northern coastal region.
The initiative will run for approximately two months before transitioning into a sustained mobile registration programme across the country.
The exercise has been enabled by the deployment of live capture registration machines, new portable technology that eliminates paperwork and allows officers to register citizens from virtually any location.
“With these live capture devices, all you need is a chief, a fingerprint officer and a registration officer. With just three officers, the team can visit any part of the county and register citizens on the spot,” he said.
Murkomen disclosed that the rapid registration drive would be implemented in every ward, with one designated and fully equipped vehicle assigned to each ward to facilitate mobility.
The Ministry is working in partnership with county governments and Members of Parliament, with support from the National Government Constituencies Development Fund (NG-CDF), which has helped provide vehicles for the initiative.
In West Pokot County alone, the government is targeting the registration of nearly 100,000 people who currently lack national identity cards.
In west Pokot, we are targeting 88,000 residents plus around 14,000 students in the schools. We are not issuing the IDs because of voting alone but for other purposes that are also very important,” said the CS.
Similar targets have been set for other counties participating in the exercise, he stated.
The Cabinet Secretary also urged Kenyans across the country to take advantage of the ongoing registration drive, noting that services have been fully decentralised and are now accessible at the local level.
He reminded the public that the government has abolished all fees associated with first-time ID registration and replacement of lost IDs, following a directive by President William Ruto.
“Registration is now completely free. The Sh300 fee for first-time registration and the Sh1,000 replacement fee have been waived. No Kenyan should pay anything to get a national identity card,” Murkomen emphasised.
He added that it was now the responsibility of every eligible Kenyan to present themselves for registration and obtain the vital document, which serves as a gateway to government services and civic participation.
Murkomen assured residents that registration officers have already been deployed across West Pokot and other participating counties and would remain on the ground for at least the next ten days. The exercise will also be conducted over weekends to ensure maximum reach.
To capture as many citizens as possible, officers have been instructed to carry out registration in public spaces such as churches, markets, funerals and community gatherings, including harambees.
“We want to remove every possible barrier and ensure that no Kenyan is left behind. Our officers will go where the people are,” he said.
The mass registration drive is part of the government’s broader commitment to inclusive service delivery and equitable development, particularly in regions that have historically lagged behind in access to state services.
He promised that chiefs who would mobilise more people to acquire the IDs during the exercise would be rewarded handsomely.
Meanwhile, the PS State Department for Immigration and Citizen Services Dr. Belio Kipsang, said the chiefs have done commendable work, especially during registration of farmers, SHA and identification.
“The chiefs are very important people and the government will continue using them. Through their efforts, the government registered millions of farmers across the country,” said Dr. Kipsang, reiterating that chiefs have acted as the government’s eye.
By Richard Muhambe and Parklea Ivor
