Auditor General raises several queries regarding e-Citizen portal
portal, Auditor-General Nancy Gathungu has said, warning that this could
compromise accountability of the billions of shillings processed through
the platform. Collections through the platform average Sh350 million daily,
up from Sh50 million in the financial year ending June 2023. More than
19,000 public services are available on e-Citizen, of which 15,440 have
been fully on-boarded.
According to the OAG Report 2023
<www.oagkenya.go.ke/wp-content/uploads/2024/02/AUDITOR-GENERALS-REPORT-ON-NATIONAL-GOVERNMENT-2022-2023.pdf#new_tab>,
there are several findings on e-citizen some of which I have highlighted
below:
1. The completeness and accuracy of the receivers of revenue receipts
amounting to Kshs.15,570,013,245 could not be confirmed.
2. The completeness and accuracy of the bank balances of Kshs.611,179,132
could not be confirmed.
3. The completeness and accuracy of the prior year’s balances of
Kshs.146,426,357 could not be confirmed.
4. The adequacy and effectiveness of the current IT controls on E-Citizen
may not guarantee the integrity of the data processed through the system.
5. The adequacy of internal controls over reconciliations and settlements
through the E-Citizen Government Digital Payments Platform could not be
confirmed.
6. The governance arrangements in support of the E-Citizen platform could
not be confirmed.
7. Users may not have any rules and procedures to follow to minimize the
risk of errors, fraud and the loss of data confidentiality, integrity and
availability.
8. The Office is undertaking a special E-Citizen Government Digital
Platform audit whose outcome is not yet out.
9. The outcome of the out-of-court negotiation between the Treasury and the
vendor was not disclosed at the time of the audit.
10. The Management has not resolved the issues raised in the previous
year’s Report on Revenue Statements nor explained the failure to resolve
them.
The continued use and integration of services on e-citizen has made the
portal one of such national importance. Yet, at a policy and institutional
level, there seem to be some glaring gaps. I do hope the governance of
e-citizen is one of the issues that has been tackled by the task force
reviewing the ICT policy and legal framework.
Regards,
*Victor Kapiyo*
Partner | *Lawmark Partners LLP*
*Nine Planet Apartments, Nairobi | **Web: www.lawmark.co.ke
<www.lawmark.co.ke/> *
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*“Your attitude, not your aptitude, will determine your altitude” Zig
Ziglar*