While the Central Bank of Kenya (CBK) continues to hamper the adoption of bitcoin, blockchain technology is increasingly gaining traction in both the public and private sectors in Kenya ranging from the transport, security, and health sector to the insurance industry.

The blockchain is a digital ledger that allows for the incorruptible exchange of data without the need for a middleman. Although the blockchain technology was originally created for bitcoin, the world’s first digital currency, the technology is now finding more uses from the tech community.

Blockchain technology has also allowed for the creation of other digital currencies such as the recently launched bitcoin cash but can also be used for much wider applications than purely financial transactions.

Kenyan Industries Are Being Revolutionised By Blockchain Technology

The National Transport and Safety Authority (NTSA) disclosed that in a month’s time it will be mandatory for Kenyan motorists to have electronic stickers for their motor vehicles. The electronic motor identification service will ensure that all drivers have the stickers on the windscreens of their cars and will be detected by use of special gadgets. This move will help in the recovery of stolen motor vehicles and rid the Kenyan roads of old cars.

The said e-service from NTSA will operate on a shared blockchain platform that will link key state agencies like the Kenya Police and the Kenya Revenue Authority. This will allow for the sharing of critical information thus alerting officers about a vehicle’s ownership, inspection, and insurance status.

The Health and Security Sectors

Kenya’s health sector is making use of the technology that will see the installation of a smart platform that will enable all the 98 public hospitals to monitor important patient data such as a patient’s health history as well as for the use of public health and hospital management.

The programme that is being streamlined by Kenya’s Seven Seas Technology in collaboration with Japan’s Toyota Shusho will eradicate the manual re-write of patients’ health history that has always been the norm in Kenyan hospitals.

Furthermore, the blockchain-driven platform will drive the creation of a professional hub for the medical practitioners. The online shared hub will serve the purpose of information sharing that will allow for nurses in remote health locations to get advice on treatment procedures from doctors based in different areas.

Specialised treatment services will undergo a complete revamp as X-rays and Magnetic Resonance Imaging (MRI) diagnostics will be performed centrally. This will help cut costs for various hospitals and health institutions as specialised doctors in certain medical fields will be able to remotely diagnose and treat different ailments using the imaging results sent to them.

The platform, built on the blockchain technology, will also allow for the scrutiny of diagnostic notes made by doctors. In return, this will help diminish the number of wrong diagnoses made.

In the security sector, the government – through the Ministry of Interior & Coordination of National Government – is working to link the database of the National Registration of Persons Bureau with that of the manned Closed-Circuit Television (CCTV) Cameras by the Kenya Police that are installed in both Nairobi and Mombasa to allow for immediate face recognition using the blockchain technology.

The Insurance Sector

America Insurance Group (AIG) partnered with banking group Standard Chartered to run a pilot using blockchain technology where it ran cover offers for their policy holders across America, Kenya, and Singapore. The pilot saw the two companies attend and process real-time payments for their clients on a unified platform that linked their agents and financial institutions.

Payments were made on time and policy renewals happened automatically once premium payments had been received. The two companies stated that the use of the blockchain technology to process payments would eradicate the need for physical company set ups in the said regions thus helping cut on expenditure.

BitPesa, Kenya’s first blockchain technology startup, which to date has raised more than $10 million USD to allow for its expansion to other markets, stated that use of digital currencies in transactions was more favoured by large companies with local subsidiaries as it saves them the hefty and costly transfer fees incurred when making international payments through the local Kenyan banks.

Resistance from the Financial Industry and the Central Bank

Although the technology is getting recognition and its use is being utilised in various sectors, the financial industry in Kenya continues to resist its adoption citing fear of criminal related activities as the reason.

The CBK’s governor, Patrick Njoroge, has been on record issuing a warning in the use and adoption of the digital currency saying that bitcoins operations are done on decentralised systems that could make Kenyans an easy target for online fraudsters.

Ally-Khan Satchu, a financial markets consultant, in an interview with Daily Nation, however, suggested that the Kenyan government review its stand on bitcoin and the use of the blockchain technology as it can no longer be disregarded as a mode of transaction.

Satchu stated: “Essentially blockchain platform payments and crypto currencies are being mainstreamed and that is why we have been seeing the material share price appreciation of leading blockchain platform provider bitcoin.”

As the head of Rich Management Services, Mr. Satchu stated that Kenyans need to be made aware on the functionalities and modalities of digital currencies so that they can take part in investment opportunities that blockchain technologies provide.