The government has approved the rollout of second-generation smart driving licences through a public–private partnership (PPP), a move aimed at modernising Kenya’s transport licensing system and enhancing road safety.
According to a Cabinet statement chaired by President William Ruto, the new licences will integrate instant fines, mobile licence wallets, and a driver merit and demerit points system.
The PPP model is expected to leverage private sector efficiency to accelerate delivery and ensure motorists have reliable access to smart licences.
“Through innovative financing, Cabinet approved the rollout of second-generation smart driving licences under a public–private partnership, integrating smart licences with an instant fines system, mobile licence wallet and driver merit and demerit points to enhance road safety and modernise licensing,” the statement read.
The initiative comes after years of delays in issuing chip-embedded driving licences. Contracts with the National Bank of Kenya (NBK) faced challenges, and the Auditor General recently flagged large stocks of unprinted and undelivered cards at the National Transport and Safety Authority (NTSA).
Designed to replace traditional paper-based documents, the smart licences will carry drivers’ personal information, traffic offence records, fines, and digital signatures. The chip-based cards aim to strengthen security, improve data management, and modernise enforcement and renewals.
NTSA officials noted that motorists have increasingly preferred yearly electronic licences over three-year smart cards, slowing uptake. Since the programme began in 2017, only 2.1 million of the targeted five million smart driving licences have been issued.
The project, initially launched under a $21.09 million contract with NBK, has since transitioned to Access Bank Plc, which received over four million blank cards. In the financial year ending June 2025, NTSA printed 342,492 licences, falling short of the 400,000 target. The previous year, 369,155 licences were issued, surpassing a lower target of 350,000 due to intensified enrolment campaigns.
Government officials believe that handing over management of the programme to private investors will improve efficiency, accelerate delivery, and help complete the long-delayed modernisation initiative.
During the same Cabinet meeting, approval was also granted for the National Integrated Security Command and Control System, a platform designed to modernise public safety infrastructure by linking security agencies for real-time intelligence sharing and coordinated national responses.
