Kenyans seeking police clearance certificates are set to benefit from faster services after the government unveiled a new biometric identification system that will cut processing time to just 24 hours.
Interior Cabinet Secretary Kipchumba Murkomen said the Multi-Biometric Identification System (MBIS) is expected to transform the issuance of police clearance certificates, ending delays that have seen applicants wait for up to two weeks or longer.
Murkomen said the reforms were informed by feedback from members of the public during the government’s Jukwaa la Usalama forums, where delays in accessing police clearance certificates emerged as one of the key concerns.
“We listened to Kenyans who consistently raised concerns over the long wait for police clearance certificates. This new system is our response to those concerns,” he said.
The Cabinet Secretary spoke at the Directorate of Criminal Investigations (DCI) headquarters during the launch of the MBIS and the presentation of the ANSI National Accreditation Board (ANAB) accreditation certificate to the DCI’s Forensic Evidence Management Unit (FEMU).
The MBIS replaces the Automated Palm and Fingerprint Identification System (APFIS), which has been operational since 2016. The upgraded platform expands biometric data storage from two million to 10 million records and increases fingerprint search capacity from 4,500 to 20,000 searches daily, significantly improving efficiency.
Murkomen said the government will gradually extend biometric enrolment services to police stations across the country, allowing more Kenyans to access the services closer to their homes.
He added that the system will be linked with the National Registration Bureau, the Judiciary, the Department of Immigration, and Interpol to facilitate faster identity verification, improve information sharing among security agencies, and strengthen criminal investigations.
According to the Interior CS, the technology will also improve the government’s ability to identify repeat offenders and seal loopholes that criminals have exploited through fragmented government records.
At the same event, the DCI’s Forensic Evidence Management Unit received international accreditation from the ANSI National Accreditation Board, a development expected to boost confidence in forensic evidence and strengthen the credibility of criminal investigations both locally and internationally.
