Nairobi County has transitioned from manual bottlenecks of paying for liquor licences to the total digitalization of services a move aimed at revolutionizing the liquor licence processes.
In a statement on Friday, Nairobi County explained that the digital LiquorPay system is built with the entrepreneur in mind to create an enabling business environment where bar owners and other established business owners thrive without being subjected to long queues or opaque manual processes.
Speaking during the launch in Nairobi, the Chief Officer for Hustler and Business Opportunities, Lydia Mathia, affirmed that the newly established automated system is designed to fasten liquor license processing for traders, increase transparency, and bring the ‘office’ to traders at their doorstep without undergoing tedious frustrations associated with the manual process.
“This system gives power of licensing back to traders at their doorsteps and eliminates corruption, increases revenue transparency, and eases the cost of doing business for entrepreneurs.”
“It is a critical tool for revenue integrity. By integrating payment directly into the digital workflow, we are ensuring that every shilling collected is accounted for and channelled back into serving the people, ” said Chief Officer Lydia Mathia
The Nairobi County Liquor Board Chairman, Myke Rabar, emphasized that the contactless LiquorPay system is a revolutionary step in streamlining efficiency in business operations, a significant and creates an enabling environment for over 13,000 bar owners in the county.
“The system is not to punish the traders. It is designed to create a free and friendly environment for traders within the county and eliminate the bottlenecks associated with the manual system,” said Rabar.
Meanwhile, Bar, Hotel, and Liquor Traders Association (BAHLITA) Secretary General Boniface Gachoka lauded Governor Sakaja’s administration for automating services to traders within the county, citing a major turning point for business operation efficiency that enhances licence compliance.
“This is a major turning point for Governor Sakaja Johnson’s administration as it enhances licensing compliance and eliminates the tedious process that traders were experiencing when applying for the licences,” said Boniface Gachoka.
LiquorPay provides the data-driven oversight aimed at enhancing high standards of compliance as well as rewarding law-abiding businesses with a faster, more predictable licensing cycle.
Once the traders pay, they receive an instant provisional license for 21-days, during the period in which the inspection will be conducted by the county enforcement agents, and later, the full-year regularized licence will be issued.
