The Ministry of Internal Affairs has warned Ugandans that soon all services will be pegged on the National ID, signaling a major shift in how citizens will access both public and private services across the country.
The Commissioner of Citizenship and Passport Control at the Ministry, Brig Gen Johnson Namanya Abaho, made the statement this week, sparking widespread discussion about its implications for daily life, governance, and individual rights.
The commissioner was presiding over a stakeholders’ meeting in Entebbe that brought together NIRA leaders, ministry officials, district security officers and RDCs from over 15 districts in the Kampala Metropolitan area to discuss citizenship, passports, and the upcoming mass registration exercise.
According to Namanya, the move aims to streamline service delivery, enhance security, and reduce fraud by creating a centralized system tied to the National Identification Number (NIN).
“The National ID is the backbone of our identification framework, from healthcare to banking, education to utilities, accessing health services, it will soon be the key to accessing everything.”
The policy builds on Uganda’s ongoing efforts to digitize government operations. Since the National ID system was rolled out in 2014, millions of Ugandans have been registered, though challenges such as delays in issuance, lost cards, and registration bottlenecks have persisted.
The ministry has not yet specified a concrete timeline for full implementation but urged citizens to ensure their IDs are up to date.
“Those without a National ID or with expired cards will face difficulties therefore, as we roll out this process, I urge all Ugandans to fully ensure that they have valid ID’s,” He explained.
The ministry has promised to roll out awareness campaigns and mobile registration drives to address gaps in ID coverage.