Supporters say biometric kits would have ensured accuracy

The country was expecting to use a biometric system to conduct a population census for the first time.
Supporters of the system, including former Kiambu Governor William Kabogo, maintain it is the only way to avoid the controversy that arose over the 2009 census results.
In 2009, results from eight districts in northern Kenya were nullified over anomalies. According to the figures, the population of Garissa, Mandera and Wajir counties was irregularly increased by 708,777.
The biometric system would have captured elements such as fingerprints and visual images.
The country was seeking to join the list of very few African countries that have used a biometric system for census.
LOGISTICS
Last month, Guinea announced a large-scale biometric identification operation that will register all government employees.
Togo also plans to begin a biometric population census. The government plans to provide all the people living in Togo, whether citizens or not, with a single biometric ID.
In 2018, Nigeria announced the use of biometrics for its population census.
The 2019 census, whose budget stands at Sh18.5 billion, will require 170,000 enumerators, 27,000 supervisors and 2,700 ICT supervisors.
The exercise will be completed in 2021, a year before the next general election.

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