IEBC must lift veil of secrecy over diaspora voter mapping

The Independent Electoral and Boundaries Commission has embarked on an ambitious exercise to expand diaspora voting from 12 to 26 countries ahead of the 2027 elections.

This is a welcome development for millions of Kenyans living abroad who have long demanded meaningful participation in the democratic processes. However, the apparent secrecy surrounding the mapping exercise raises concerns about transparency, independence and credibility of the consultation process.

In January, a four-day technical workshop was held in Naivasha to strengthen collaboration on diaspora voting. The workshop followed an October 23, 2025 meeting involving IEBC, SDDA and the State Department for Foreign Affairs, which agreed to operationalise a Technical Working Group to coordinate diaspora voting activities.

While intergovernmental cooperation is necessary for logistical and diplomatic purposes, the close involvement of a government agency in coordinating electoral preparations raises legitimate concerns about the independence of the process.

The Constitution establishes IEBC as an independent commission, free from direction or control by any person or authority. Its independence must therefore be demonstrated not merely through constitutional declarations but through transparent operational arrangements that protect electoral processes from actual or perceived political interference.

The IEBC–SDDA Technical Working Group must consequently disclose its membership, terms of reference, operational responsibilities and the mechanisms through which Kenyan diaspora communities are being engaged.

Of particular importance is publication of a comprehensive list of diaspora organisations involved in the exercise, including the criteria used to identify and select them. Such disclosure would enable communities to establish whether their interests are genuinely represented or whether consultations are confined to a small circle of familiar individuals.

Kenyan diplomatic missions have an important facilitative role, but they cannot be treated as the sole gateways to diaspora communities. Many diplomatic officials are posted directly from Kenya and operate within institutional circles that do not always reflect the everyday experiences and concerns of Kenyans living abroad.

Diaspora communities comprise professionals, students, workers, businesspeople, political activists and established community organisations with diverse interests and geographical circumstances. Their representation cannot legitimately be reduced to a handful of self-appointed community leaders.

The mapping exercise reportedly involves assessing diaspora population distribution, evaluating the accessibility and suitability of registration centres, undertaking stakeholder consultations, examining legal and technological requirements, and preparing country assessment reports for IEBC consideration.

These are substantial responsibilities requiring extensive fieldwork and meaningful community engagement.

The Commission must urgently publish the implementation timetable, the countries and cities targeted, the number and locations of planned consultation meetings, the duration of field visits and the expected dates for submitting assessment reports.

An exercise of this magnitude cannot credibly be undertaken through a single meeting with selected individuals, followed by a hurried report presented as the collective position of an entire diaspora community.

The IEBC should instead invite established Kenyan diaspora organisations to submit expressions of interest directly to the Commission to support community mobilisation and consultations. Inclusive regional coordination teams could then be established to work alongside assessment teams, with SDDA and diplomatic missions providing the necessary logistical and diplomatic support.

Publicity must also extend beyond government websites and embassy communication channels. Kenya's national television and radio stations should carry announcements during prime news broadcasts, while diaspora media organisations should be actively involved in disseminating consultation schedules and encouraging participation.

Furthermore, preliminary assessment findings and recommendations should be circulated through established community organisations for scrutiny and feedback before final reports are adopted.

Kenya has witnessed too many public participation exercises reduced to carefully choreographed meetings involving handpicked individuals whose attendance merely legitimises predetermined decisions. Such practices must not be exported to the diaspora.

With the 2027 General Election approaching, urgency must not become an excuse for secrecy, selective consultation or compromised independence.

-The writer is an advocate for diaspora affairs