The National Assembly Departmental Committee on Communication, Information, and Innovation on Friday conducted key stakeholder consultations on the National Addressing Bill, 2025, marking a significant legislative step towards transforming Kenya’s fragmented and outdated spatial referencing systems into a unified, digital-ready national addressing framework.

Sponsored by Kiambu MP Machua Waithaka, the bill establishes standardized national addressing infrastructure to support e-commerce logistics, emergency response, security coordination, and public service delivery across the country.

During a clause-by-clause review forum in Nairobi, Communication, Information, and Innovation Committee Chairman John Kiarie stated that Kenya lacks an integrated address system.

“As a country, we should have reached a point where we are clear about how we handle our addressing system,” said Kiarie.

Kiarie confirmed that the draft is at a formative “green paper stage” ahead of upcoming public participation exercises and its subsequent second reading in the August House, observing that the proposal impacts information, broadcasting, security, housing, land planning, and road infrastructure.

Mwala MP Erastus Kivasu endorsed the initiative, stating that “this is a timely legislative proposal whose time has now come. We have work to prioritize and to ensure its implementation, creating a clear roadmap for the country’s addressing system for prosperity.”

While stakeholders expressed broad support for the core intent of the bill, a discussion arose regarding its proposed governance structure. Broadcasting and Telecommunications Principal Secretary Stephen Isaboke revealed that national address system discussions have been ongoing for nearly a decade.

While offering conditional support for the framework, the Ministry raised reservations described as a legislative “showstopper” regarding Waithaka’s proposal to establish a standalone National Addressing Council.

“Establishing a standardized national addressing framework has been an administrative objective for nearly a decade, and we fully support the concept of a unified location database. However, instead of establishing an independent standalone council, which runs counter to our institutional rationalization and cost-management policies, we strongly recommend anchoring this system within our existing regulatory bodies to ensure a highly efficient, centralized, yet devolved governance structure,” said PS Isaboke.

The State Department, alongside the Communications Authority of Kenya, the Council of Governors, and aligned technical agencies, advised against creating a brand-new entity, noting that it runs counter to the government’s ongoing fiscal consolidation agenda, which prioritizes the rationalization, merging, and consolidation of state agencies to manage administrative costs.

Instead of a new council, stakeholders recommended a centralized yet devolved governance model anchored within existing state institutions. Communications Authority of Kenya CEO David Mugonyi justified the authority’s suitability as the national custodian by citing its existing legal mandate under the Kenya Information and Communications Act, its ongoing development of technical standards with the Kenya Bureau of Standards, and its role representing Kenya at the Universal Postal Union.

“The important tasks for this Committee on the Bill are to establish a legal framework that ensures efficient implementation, while the Authority is uniquely positioned to serve as the national custodian and coordinator of the addressing system, given the existing mandate,” said Mugonyi”

Various government line dockets responsible for security, housing, land, and roads underscored the cross-cutting importance of a standardized address database, characterizing it as critical infrastructure for national development.

From the Interior and National Administration docket, Deputy Chief State Counsel Prisca Wambui supported the bill, citing its potential to improve disaster management, emergency response times, and administrative efficiency, though she emphasized the importance of data privacy and security safeguards.

The State Department of  Housing and Urban Development stressed that Addressing should not operate as a parallel administrative system, recommending instead that it be integrated into existing county spatial plans and development control frameworks to manage urban growth.

In the Lands and Physical Planning docket, Assistant State Counsel Thomas Peter affirmed that effective land management, tenure security, and property registration depend heavily on precise geospatial identification, reinforcing departmental backing for the proposal. Additionally, officials from the State Department for Roads noted that a unified system would require standardized road and street classifications, which would in turn improve infrastructure planning, guide public investment decisions, and assist traffic departments in identifying accident black spots.

Defending the bill, its sponsor, Machua Waithaka, drew from his personal academic experience in international trade in Texas, United States, recalling how structured physical maps were used for trade long before digital navigation tools became widespread. He contrasted this history with Kenya’s current reliance on informal “dropped pin” location sharing due to the absence of a structured addressing framework. He further cited global business expectations, noting that Alibaba founder Jack Ma had previously noted that Kenya lacked a formal address framework, questioning its scalability for global e-commerce, and added that major international logistics platforms such as Amazon depend on accurate, standardized location systems.

From a local economic perspective, Hon. Waithaka observed that the Postal Corporation of Kenya could significantly expand its last-mile delivery business, potentially threefold, if neighborhood postal codes and structured addressing systems are fully rolled out.

The newly elected Isiolo South MP, Hon. Tubi Mohammed Tubi, welcomed the proposal, expressing optimism that the bill will streamline the country’s growing logistics and courier system.

“The bill should define clear implementation, monitoring, and evaluation frameworks, proposing that the addressing infrastructure be embedded within the education sector to optimize school tracking systems and support capitation disbursement systems,” noted Hon. Dr. Joyce Bensuda.

Bernard Kitur emphasized the need for technological advancement in the addressing sector, drawing on Western systems to enhance domestic efficiency. Conversely, Isiolo County MP Hon. Mumina Bonaya raised points regarding data security, noting that cybersecurity systems must be prepared to protect exposed geolocation data, while also highlighting localized challenges such as instances where designated access roads have been encroached upon or developed, which could impact physical implementation.

Moving forward, the National Assembly Departmental Committee will now consolidate the stakeholder input gathered at the Argyle Hotel to refine the bill, with a particular focus on separating physical street-naming functions from digital address data management before the revised draft proceeds to the public participation stage and further legislative consideration.