Auditor General Nancy Gathungu has urged the government to quicklytakecomplete control of the eCitizen platform, cautioning that the existingsetupposes operational risks and sustained reliance on a private vendor.
In a unique audit report from March 2025, Gathungu stated that the platform must be transferred right away by Webmasters Kenya Ltd and entirely placed under state control. She stated that enhanced internal supervision is necessary to protect public funds and enhance the provision of government services.
“Webmasters Kenya Ltd must unconditionally transfer the eCitizen Platform as detailed in paragraph 7 of the handover agreement.” Additionally, the report states, “a strong Change Management Process must be established, mandating that all system modifications are thoroughly documented, evaluated, and sanctioned by designated individuals.”
The audit found that while the platform was created to digitize government revenue collection and service delivery, it remains not entirely under state control despite being government-owned.
The report states that the platform’s development was fundedby the World Bank and the International Finance Corporation (IFC), which engaged Webmasters Kenya Ltd for software development and upkeep.
In 2017, the IFC assigned the platform’s ownership to the National Treasury, providing the source code, contracts, business case, and additional operational documents.
Nevertheless, the audit reveals that on January 13, 2023, the Ministry of Information, Communications and Digital Economy along with Webmasters Kenya Ltd entered into an additional agreement in which the vendor agreed to willingly transfer the platform to the government.
Gathungu stated that the audit failed to determine how the system returned to the vendor once it had been given to the government years prior.
