The government has issued more than half a million passports in the last three years despite ongoing delays in the application process, a new progress report shows.

According to the Governance and Public Administration (GPA) Subcommittee of the National Development Implementation Committee (NDIC), 514,152 passports have been processed since the Kenya Kwanza administration came into office in 2022.

The report further revealed that the backlog of uncollected passports had reduced from 90,000 to 56,000 in the past three months, marking a steady clearance of pending cases.

The update was presented during the subcommittee’s 12th meeting held at the Kenyatta International Convention Centre (KICC).

The session was chaired by Interior Principal Secretary Raymond Omollo, with Parliamentary Affairs Principal Secretary Aurelia Rono serving as vice-chair.

The report also underscored the rollout of the Unique Personal Identifier, commonly referred to as the Maisha Number, which aims to unify scattered identification records.

This digital ID merges key details such as birth certificate numbers, national IDs, KRA PINs, and Social Health Authority (SHA) numbers.

So far, 90,038 Maisha Numbers have been issued in Nairobi, Kiambu, Machakos, and Kajiado counties.

In its review of digital progress, the committee reported that more than 22,000 government services have now been made available on the e-Citizen platform, with 48 agencies linked to the Maisha Integrated Database.

On legislative work, the GPA Subcommittee confirmed that eight bills and policies had been approved, while another 10 bills and 17 statutory instruments are pending. Among the key bills in progress are the Public Participation Bill, the Whistleblowers Bill, and the Anti-Corruption Bill.

“These bills reinforce the Government’s commitment to strengthening public trust, transparency, and accountability through more active civic engagement,” reads the report.

To achieve wider participation, the government has rolled out national radio and television programmes, engaged in vernacular language outreach, and partnered with civil society organisations across 14 counties.

On security, the report cited ongoing peace and rehabilitation programmes in the North Rift, a region affected by banditry.

It further noted that the County Government of West Pokot has already allocated land for the rebuilding of Chesegon and Ksaa primary schools.

The subcommittee also detailed reforms across the police, prisons, and National Youth Service, including the second phase of salary and allowance reviews, introduction of a medical cover for personnel, titling of police land, and restructuring of security units.