The Kenyan government has announced that starting later this year, all customs officers will be required to wear body-worn cameras as part of major changes aimed at improving airport operations.
On Friday, January 30, Transport Cabinet Secretary Davis Chirchir unveiled a series of reforms.
These include mandating that all Kenya Revenue Authority (KRA) staff must be equipped with body cameras from July 1. The move is intended to promote transparency and ensure more efficient operations at the airport.
In addition, Chirchir issued a directive requiring that staff from various agencies—including the Kenya Airports Authority (KAA), KRA, Immigration, Port Health, Kenya Plant Health Inspectorate Service (KEPHIS), Ministry of Tourism, National Police Service, and retail concessionaires—must wear uniforms and name tags within the next two weeks.
This initiative aims to improve identification and customer service standards across the airport.
To further enhance the passenger experience, Chirchir announced that customer service training will be provided to all airport staff.
These measures are part of a broader push to modernize airport services. For instance, the government has raised the duty-free allowance from Ksh50,000 to Ksh250,000 and is implementing a significant upgrade at Jomo Kenyatta International Airport (JKIA).
Within 90 days, the number of immigration booths at JKIA will be doubled, along with an increase in the staff to speed up passenger clearance and alleviate overcrowding.
These reforms come after a Cabinet decision to exempt African citizens from the Electronic Travel Authorisation (eTA) requirement, making travel across the continent smoother. Additionally, new systems such as multiple-entry ETA and expedited processing have been introduced.
The government is also deploying advanced technology to monitor staff at JKIA to ensure greater accountability and improve service delivery. In line with this, electronic self-clearance gates (e-Gates) will soon be introduced to streamline the immigration process, allowing for quicker and more efficient passenger flow.
One of the more traveler-friendly reforms is the directive that only bags flagged by security scanners will be opened in a dedicated screening room, which should reduce delays and enhance the passenger experience.
Lastly, Kenya is implementing advanced passenger information systems to improve international security and boost operational efficiency at the airport, marking a significant step forward in the country’s efforts to modernize its air travel infrastructure.
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