e-Citizen is government owned – PS Bitok says

The government has assured MPs that it wholly owns the e-citizen online services access and pay platform.

Immigration and Citizen Services Principal Secretary Julius Bitok told the National Assembly’s Departmental Committee on Administration and Internal Security that the Government also has custody of the relevant documentation confirming the ownership.

Bitok informed the committee led by Narok West MP Gabriel Tongoyo that the government had nothing to conceal regarding e-Citizen ownership and the contracts it had signed with vendors to support the platform’s technical operations and maintenance.

“I can confirm that there exists a valid contract, approved by the Attorney General and signed with the ICT Authority (ICTA), where e-Citizen was domiciled before its transfer to the current State Department. This contract affirms that e-Citizen is fully owned by the government,” the PS stated.

He explained that the e-Citizen operational model was a ‘tripartite arrangement’, with his Department responsible for onboarding services, while ICTA and the National Treasury, through the Government Digital Payments (GDP), managed the operating platform and revenue collection respectively.

Bitok said the contract captured details of how exactly the Sh50 convenience fee paid for each eCitizen transaction.

He was responding to Lari MP Joseph Kahangara’s question on how the amount was spent.

Regarding the Electronic Travel Authorisation (eTA) system that replaced entry visas to Kenya, the PS told MPs that the government will rely on the guidance of security agencies inthe relevant procurement process due to national securityconsiderations.

He revealed that following President William Ruto’s declaration of Kenya as a visa-free country last year, the number of visitors had increased by 20 percent compared to 2023.

He was accompanied by the eCitizen Director General Isaac Ochieng and his Immigration counterpart, Evelyn Cheluget, among other senior officials.