The Kenya Government has rolled out new generation number plates for all imported motor vehicles in a bid to curb tax evasion and theft. This is according to Dr. Fred Matiang’i, the country’s Interior Cabinet Secretary who also termed the move a dragnet of curtailing the tax evasion within the car importing business sector.
Kenyans will part with Ksh3,000 to replace the old motor-vehicle number plates with the digital ones equipped with security features to curb crime and theft cases. The digital plates were unveiled during the launch of the new number plates at the GSU Recce unit Headquarters in Ruiru, Nairobi on Tuesday, August 30.
All automobiles, including motorbikes and three-wheelers, trailers and tractors, both private and government-owned, and those used by diplomats and international organizations will adopt the new generational plates.
“We are doing this because we want to address the security of our country. We want to help other agencies such as KRA to function properly, uplift the financial sector and improve transparency,” he stated.
Some of the security features will be visible to the naked eye whereas others will only be accessible to law enforcement agencies. Besides a unique template, they’ll feature a specially-imprinted national flag, hologram, watermark, unique and different serial numbers for rear and front plates that are linked to the vehicle’s chassis number and customized font.
The smart plates, which will be easily identifiable to law enforcement officers, will also store information such as year of manufacturer, type and colour of vehicle, engine number, transmission type, date and place of manufacture, and insurance details. Existing plates were said to lack adequate security features thereby making it difficult for enforcement agencies to identify the fake ones supplied by unauthorised personnel.
He further pointed out that the new plates would cover 12 categories of vehicles as per the legal notice 62 of 2016. He also disclosed that the number of motorists had risen to 4.8 million from 3.2 million last year.
“The plates form a basis for tracking and monitoring vehicles in the country which have risen significantly,” he explained.
