A historic milestone towards an inclusive democracy

Roughly five million Kenyans face a discriminatory process when applying for national identity documents due to their ethnicity or religion. Without an ID, they cannot apply for a job, access health care, or vote. Rashid first sought to secure his ID card ahead of the 2017 elections. He didn’t get it, but he kept trying – for six years. “I have lost so many job opportunities and so many chances because of not having an ID card,” says Rashid.

In 2024, community paralegals helped people like Rashid to navigate the bureaucratic system and secure identity documents. These cases, and the thousands that preceded them, are the foundation on which we are building a diverse, national movement to advocate for equal citizenship rights. Together, we are fighting for a society where everyone – regardless of their religion or ethnicity – belongs.

Our movement achieved a historic win in 2024: The president of Kenya recognized the discriminatory nature of the ID system and ended vetting – an unconstitutional step in the application process that only people of certain ethnic or religious backgrounds were subjected to.

This is a huge milestone. When Namati and the Nubian Rights Forum first tackled citizenship discrimination in 2013, the government denied that vetting even existed, and the issue was virtually invisible to the public. But the new application process risks continuing discrimination in another form by only subjecting Muslim-majority communities to this new process. We continue to push for a process that is equal and just.

We also continue to advocate for an inclusive and accountable transition to digital ID – in Kenya and globally. We brought our first-hand experience and insights to international institutions like the World Bank to ensure that lived experiences of marginalized communities shape policy discussions on digital ID.

Community paralegals are the driving force of all these efforts. In 2024, 14 paralegals published a collection of stories to share what they’ve learned over 10+ years in their own words.

Our Impact at a Glance