The National Police Service is seeking Sh20 billion from development partners to intensify the digitisation of its services, including the introduction of a digital occurrence book (OB) and training of officers.
A forum that brought together ambassadors from different countries as well as security stakeholders heard that the police want Sh11 billion for network connectivity, Sh4 billion for digitisation of police and citizen records, Sh3.5 billion for ICT equipment and Sh0.93 billion for software and technology.
The reforms are aimed at purchasing modern equipment for police officers, case management systems, instant traffic fines, training and capacity building.
During the roundtable forum in Nairobi on Wednesday, Inspector-General of Police Douglas Kanja told stakeholders that the ongoing digitisation drive will help rid the service of corruption and improve its investigative capacity.
“There is a need to build capacity and effectiveness in the service. We need to improve transparency and accountability. I welcome the anti-corruption commission to come and look into our systems so that if there are gaps, they can advise us and we close those gaps. A digital occurrence book will allow Kenyans to file complaints from the comfort of their home. We also hope to have traffic instant fines to increase transparency and accountability,” Mr Kanja said.
Mr Kanja said the NPS is working with the Ethics and Anti-Corruption Commission (EACC) to review its processes to identify corruption loopholes.
Interior Cabinet Secretary Kipchumba Murkomen, who also attended the event, said digitisation of the service was one of the ways of getting rid of bottlenecks.
“Digitisation will ensure that we get rid of corruption and introduce instant traffic fines to help us deal with resource constraints,” he said.
Mr Murkomen announced that the government is in the final stages of rolling out body cameras, which will improve accountability and ensure professionalism within the service. He emphasised the importance of transforming government institutions to deliver efficient services instead of focusing on individuals.
Raymond Omollo, the Principal Secretary for Internal Security and National Administration, said the government is focused on a multi-sectoral approach to help the police deliver excellent services to the citizens.
“We have walked a journey to strengthen our security through a multi-sectoral approach. We appreciate the support and we will leverage on these partnerships to ensure the National police services is at excellence,” Dr Omollo said.
The OB is a critical record keeping tool for police stations. In recent years, it has often been vulnerable to tampering, manipulation and missing files. The digitisation effort aims to eliminate such problems by making case records unalterable and easily traceable.
It will also allow Kenyans to file complaints from the comfort of their homes without having to go to the police station.
In December 2024, President William Ruto launched the National Police Service and State Department for Correctional Services Strategic Plans for 2023-2027, which allocates Sh28 billion for the digitisation of police records.
Prior to the launch, the government had already started digitising the OB in selected police stations, with 76 stations in and around Nairobi already migrating to the new system. The plan is now expected to be extended to police stations across the country.
