NAIROBI, Kenya – Kenyan seafarers will receive a globally recognised Seafarer Identification Document (SID) within three months, ending years of delays that have cost the industry thousands of jobs.
Immigration and Citizen Services Principal Secretary Belio Kipsang told MPs on Tuesday that the new ID, which also serves as a travel document, will meet International Labour Organisation (ILO) standards and enable Kenyan crew to work freely aboard international vessels.
A prototype card has already been sent to the ILO for review, with updated features — including embedded biometric data in both the chip and QR code — set to be resubmitted for approval.
The State Department has also procured live capture units for biometric enrolment, which will transmit data in real time to a central processing system at the National Registration Bureau.
“Unlike the national ID, which is only valid locally, the SID must meet global standards because it will double up as a travel document,” Dr Kipsang said.
Race Against Time
Kenya ratified the SID Convention in February 2022 but has lagged behind regional peers such as Tanzania, which has already issued thousands of compliant IDs.
The delay has seen more than 1,500 Kenyan seafarers miss out on contracts aboard cargo and cruise ships, while the International Maritime Organization’s enforcement of the convention since May 2024 has left an estimated 1.5 million Kenyans affected by job restrictions.
Kipsang told the National Assembly’s Committee on Diaspora Affairs and Migrant Workers that the remaining tasks include completing a Public Key Infrastructure audit and ICAO certification, and installing servers and network infrastructure to host the seafarers’ database at both the Kenya Maritime Authority (KMA) and the NRB.
He assured MPs the system would be operational on time, saying: “Within the next three months, it will be ready.”
Labour Market at Stake
Kenya’s delay in rolling out the SID has created a competitive disadvantage in the region, with Tanzanian seafarers now taking up opportunities that would otherwise have gone to Kenyans.
Maritime unions have warned that without the document, Kenyan crew remain locked out of contracts in shipping firms that strictly enforce the convention.
The SID is expected to enhance both the mobility and security of Kenyan seafarers, offering them a crucial lifeline in the global maritime labour market.
