The government has revealed that it is in the process of erecting new technologies in all Huduma Centres across the country to speed up the processing of police clearance certificates, also known as good conduct certificates.
In a statement on Thursday, July 24, the Huduma Kenya Secretariat (HKS) revealed that the government will introduce Multi-Biometric Identification (MBI) systems and live capture machines in these centres that will reduce the turnaround time (TAT) and enable Kenyans to receive the documents within a day.
Currently, getting a police clearance certificate can take several days or weeks; however, the new machines, which will be used to swiftly and accurately capture an individual's biometrics, such as fingerprints and facial recognition, are expected to speed up this process.
The announcement was made after representatives from the HKS, the Directorate of Criminal Investigations (DCI), and Public Sector Reforms (PSR) met on Thursday to deliberate on new mechanisms that can be introduced to enhance service delivery in the centres.
"Plans are underway to significantly reduce the turnaround time (TAT) for DCI services, with police clearance certificates soon to be processed and issued within a single day," Huduma Kenya said in a statement.
"The initiative is aimed at improving operational efficiency at the DCI desk and providing faster, more seamless services to citizens through Huduma Centres across the country," it added.
A good conduct certificate is a crucial document that verifies that an individual has no criminal record and is a key requirement during employment and immigration.
To apply for this Certificate in Kenya, one is required to create or log into their eCitizen account, navigate to the DCI services, and apply for a Police Clearance Certificate.
The application process involves filling out the online form, paying the required fee, downloading and printing the C24 fingerprint form and invoice, and then proceeding to a designated DCI office or desks at Huduma centres for fingerprinting.
This development comes a week after the Interior Cabinet Secretary Kipchumba Mukomen said that the government is in the process of deploying the 'Mobile Live Capture Unit', which will enable the faster processing of IDs in marginalised communities.
In a statement on Thursday, June 16, Murkomen said that the machines will enable residents residing in these areas, which often lack IDs due to poor infrastructure or insecurity, to get their IDs within three days.
"I assessed the piloting of the Mobile Live Capture Unit, a portable battery-powered machine that captures data of ID applicants and relays it electronically for processing. After testing, the machines will be deployed to marginalised counties," Murkomen said.
