Concerns Grow Over Private Control of Kenya’s Digital Public Services
Kenyan lawmakers and experts are raising alarms over the government’s push to digitize public services while leaving key platforms under private management. The move, which has involved spending billions of shillings, has sparked questions about oversight, accountability, and security of sensitive citizen data. Platforms such as e-Citizen, NTSA, Treasury portals, and Boma Yangu have experienced repeated outages, delays, and reported financial discrepancies, putting millions of users at risk and raising fears of mismanagement.
Investigations and parliamentary inquiries have highlighted significant flaws in the system. Reports reveal that e-Citizen alone has seen Sh9 billion lost and Sh2.5 billion collected illegally, while NTSA lacks proper control over its portal, exposing critical services to potential data breaches. Lawmakers have summoned principal secretaries, including Belio Kipsang, John Tanui, and Chris Kiptoo, to account for the management of these platforms. Despite the digital revolution promising faster service delivery, citizens remain frustrated by disruptions and the opacity surrounding private firms’ involvement in managing government portals.
The implications of continued private control are far-reaching. Analysts warn that without strengthened oversight, Kenya risks both financial losses and compromised citizen data. Public confidence in e-government initiatives could erode further, undermining the very goal of digitization: efficient and transparent service delivery. Moving forward, experts suggest that the government must reclaim authority over these platforms, implement stringent security measures, and ensure transparency in all partnerships with private operators. How these reforms are handled will determine whether Kenya can fully realize a secure, accessible, and accountable digital public service ecosystem.