Kenya Police roll out new uniforms with name, force number on display

The new set of navy blue uniforms will have the name of the officer wearing it and the force number embroidered.

Female police officers will have both trousers and skirts.

This is the latest move by authorities to change the uniform after the current one was adopted in 2018 in changes. This will cost millions of shillings.

A task force on police reforms led by the retired Chief Justice David Maraga had recommended in its report released last month that the service revert to the old blue uniform.

The team said the Cabinet Secretary for Defence, in consultation with the Cabinet Secretary for Interior, should develop and propose legislation for the establishment of a National Uniforms Committee.

They proposed the committee be made of representatives from the Disciplined and Security Services whose mandate will be to approve standards, colours and qualities of uniforms for use by each Service.

“This recommendation flows from the numerous complaints voiced on the quality and supply of uniforms to the members of the three services,” the team said.

“As regards the NPS uniforms, in line with the overwhelming views of the public, police officers themselves, and the leadership of NPS, the taskforce recommends that the NPS reverts to its old uniform for three years, during which a process of designing a new uniform should be commenced in accordance with the recommendations in this Report.”

“The Committee should also address the misuse of uniforms by the public,” the report says.

The new uniform was first unveiled in February this year when Inspector General of Police Japhet Koome donned it.

The previous government phased out the iconic blue police uniform, which had been in use for decades.

The redesign was intended to increase the visibility of officers and create uniformity across all ranks during the merger of the Administrative Police and the Kenya Police Service.

The committee consists mostly of officials from security agencies and is chaired by the Vice Chief of Defence Forces of Kenya Defence Forces.

The other members include a representative from the National Police Service, Kenya Prisons Service, Kenya Forest Service, Kenya Wildlife Service and National Youth Service.

The team had arrived at the bright blue colour as the one for the working uniform by the General Duty personnel.

Police, especially those in operational areas also use jungle, green and khaki uniforms.

Other units in the National Police Service will maintain their current uniforms. They include the Administration Police Service and General Service Unit who use jungle ones.

The new police uniform was a campaign issue that the current government vowed to change.

Deputy President Rigathi Gachagua said during campaigns the government will revoke the new blue police uniform.

The former government said the process surrounding the adoption of a neutral colour was to symbolise the merger and the abandoning of the previous AP and the Kenya Police signature colours.

The uniforms were being wholly made in Kenya by local textiles firms based in Thika, Kitui, Nakuru and Eldoret under a Buy Kenya, Build Kenya government drive that had also significantly cut costs.

This enabled the hiring of more officers and the modernisation of police equipment.