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Kenyan Government Launches60-Day Program TargetingKenyans Who Lost TheirCitizenship
The government has launched a 60-day Rapid Results Initiative Program (RRI) to expedite the issuance of citizenship documents.
The program, which aims at clearing the backlog of citizenship applications at the Immigration Department, will run from June 2nd to July 31st.
Speaking during the launch at the Immigration headquarters in Nyayo House on Thursday, Interior CS Fred Matiang’i said over 25,000 applications are pending at the Immigration offices.
“Now that our constitution allows for dual citizenship, it is important for all those Kenyans to apply and regain their citizenship and all applicants have to follow the guidelines laid down in the Kenya Citizenship and Immigration Act of 2011,” said Matiang’i.
The initiative also targets people who were born in Kenya but relinquished their citizenship to become citizens of another country before the 2010 constitution.
Matiang’i added that the government is seeking to reunite the affected with their families and has requested the Attorney-General to simplify the process.
Interior PS Karanja Kibicho said the program also targets spouses of Kenyan citizens and their descendants as well as foreign investors.
“We are also issuing spouses of Kenyan citizens and their descendants with legal identity documents to stabilize the families. Some 500 qualified foreign investors will also receive lawful permanent residence status to spur our economic growth and create thousands of jobs for locals,” he said.
The government plans to process as many applications as possible by the end of the year. All applications will be done online.
Trade and Industrialization CS Betty Maina and the director of immigration services Alexander Muteshi were also present during the launch of the program.
CS Maina asked foreign investors with pending applications to revisit their applications and follow the process in the new system.
“Kenya remains a very open place for investors and we welcome them here,” she said.