The National Transport and Safety Authority (NTSA) has announced plans to overhaul the production of driving licences and vehicle number plates by bringing in private sector investors.

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Speaking on Monday, June 15, during an interview on Citizen TV , NTSA Director General Nashon Kondiwa said the move is aimed at addressing persistent delays in production and issuance of the critical documents.

He said the government should not directly handle the production and sale of driving licences and number plates, noting that many countries use licensed private firms instead.

“I do not think a government, or any government institution, should be trading in number plates, which is what has been happening in Kenya since independence," Kondiwa disclosed.

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"If you look at what is happening in other countries, the governments actually license private producers, and that is what we intend to do in the coming days,” he added.

The NTSA boss explained that delays in the issuance of driving licences have largely been caused by underfunding , revealing that the project, launched in 2017, has struggled to achieve its objectives due to limited resources.

According to Kondiwa, only 20 enrolment kits have been deployed nationwide since the introduction of the smart driving licence system nearly a decade ago.

“Delay in driving licence production is a problem of underfunding. This smart driving licence started in 2017, and we have only used 20 enrolment kits,” he stated.

To address the challenges, he said NTSA is seeking to implement a privately initiated model that would allow private investors to finance and operate key aspects of the driving licence production process.

Kondiwa said the private investor would establish up to 290 centres across the country where Kenyans will be able to walk in and receive their driving licences within a short period.

📰 Source: Kenyans.co.ke