The National Transport and Safety Authority (NTSA) had a hard time on Tuesday before Parliament over the slow implementation of the Smart Driving License project, which has been plagued by delays and inefficiencies. Appearing before the Public Investments Committee (PIC) on Governance and Education chaired by Jack Wamboka, NTSA Director General George Njao was questioned about the project stagnation and supposed wastage of public funds on the procurement of smart cards for the Smart Driving Licence project. According to an audit report presented during the meeting, NTSA procured 4,042,050 smart cards at Ksh1.19 billion. However, as of March 2025, only 1,479,176 cards had been printed and issued over six years.
This meant that 2,562,874 smart licenses-valued at Ksh788 million-are lying unused in NTSA stores, raising concerns over mismanagement and lack of urgency in implementing the digital transition.
NTSA Director General George Njao, when he appeared before the Public Investments Committee on Governance and Education on March 25, 2025.
Photo National Assembly The lawmakers criticised the NTSA for failing to meet the initial three-year project timeline, which was meant to conclude in March 2020.
