African governments are accelerating digital identity and public service modernization, with Rwanda expanding biometric digital IDs to citizens and refugees, while Kenya strengthens cybersecurity to support its rapidly growing digital government ecosystem.
Rwanda expands biometric digital IDs to refugees
The Rwandan government is looking to gradually roll out its new digital biometric identity card for all its citizens and residents, as well as refugees living in camps and urban centers in the African nation, SOS Média Burundi reported.
For several months now, Rwanda’s National Identification Service has been working on a large-scale biometric operation. With the system, registered citizens and residents are photographed, their fingerprints taken, and their irises scanned to populate the centralized database, which is designed to facilitate identification and access to the country’s public services.
Children will also be integrated into the system upon birth. Their photograph will be added to their file by age four; by age five, fingerprints and iris biometric data will be recorded; and digital signatures will be taken by age sixteen, before the issuance of their final digital identity card.
Apart from Rwandan citizens, refugees living in the country will also benefit from the new digital biometric identity cards. The country’s immigration service, together with the refugee ministry and the United Nations High Commissioner for Refugees (UNHCR), is conducting a registration campaign in all refugee camps and urban centers.
The largest camp in Rwanda, Mahama, and home to over 70,000 Burundian and Congolese refugees, is already progressing rapidly, with a significant number of refugees registered.
“We are happy to be included in all government programs. This shows that we are valued. We feel integrated and we thank the Rwandan government for this consideration,” J. Claude N., a Burundian refugee in the Mahama camp said.
For most refugees, previous identity cards have already demonstrated administrative recognition. “When we received refugee identity cards, many doors opened for us. We were able to open bank accounts, buy SIM cards, access employment, obtain medical coverage, and complete various administrative procedures. Biometric travel documents followed later,” JMV, an urban refugee living in Kigali, said.
“We have high hopes for these new biometric cards. We believe they will offer us more opportunities and further simplify our daily administrative tasks,” he added.
Rwandan authorities plan to implement the new digital ID system in phases, with the process continuing until June 2027. After the transition period, all old identity cards will be deactivated and removed from the system.
This reform is part of Rwanda’s digital modernization strategy, often cited as one of the most advanced in Africa in terms of information technology.
Kenya aims to expand digital government services
Elsewhere, Kenyan lawmakers are establishing a dedicated body to strengthen the country’s digital infrastructure and trust and security in government as the government expands its digital ID coverage, which is reported to have over 42 million records in the 2025/2026 fiscal year.
The dedicated body, dubbed the “National Cybersecurity Agency” (NCSA), aims to consolidate governance of Kenya’s national digital infrastructure and institutionalize digital trust, given the East African country’s growing digital economy. On June 22, the Ministry of Interior and National Administration welcomed the move by the parliament to allow the National Cybersecurity Agency Order of 2026, which was issued by President William Ruto. The order paved the way for the creation of NCSA.
Thanks to Maisha Namba‘s digital ID system—or the “unique personal identification number assigned to every Kenyan citizen upon registration”—and other digital public infrastructure plans, the Kenyan government is acknowledging that trust in these digital systems requires a dedicated, empowered regulator. With the NCSA’s coming, major shifts toward a more proactive and centralized command structure for protecting the nation’s digital sovereignty are expected.
The Ministry of Interior and National Administration said that the establishment of NCSA is “a significant step in Kenya’s efforts to secure its rapidly expanding digital ecosystem and safeguard critical information infrastructure that supports national security, public service delivery, economic activity and the daily lives of millions of Kenyans.”
“The Agency has, therefore, been established to provide a coordinated national framework for preventing, detecting, responding to and recovering from cyber threats.”
In addition, the dedicated body will serve as the central technical and regulatory institution on cybersecurity matters. It will work with government agencies, security institutions, regulators, industry players, academia, development partners, and international cybersecurity networks. The body is also expected to promote research, innovation, and skills development to strengthen the government’s networks and digital resilience.
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