By: Kanto
Kai Okanta
Kenya and Lesotho are
deepening cooperation on information and communication technology regulation,
with the Communications Authority of Kenya (CA) hosting a delegation from the
Lesotho Communications Authority (LCA) for a benchmarking engagement on Kenya’s
National Addressing System (NAS).
The engagement is focused on
Kenya’s implementation of the NAS as well as the legal and regulatory
frameworks supporting the system.
The National Addressing
System is designed to assign a verifiable address to every street, building and
parcel of land in Kenya, with the objective of improving location services and
supporting the growth of e-commerce, particularly last-mile deliveries.
The system is also expected
to strengthen emergency response by making it easier for emergency service
providers to locate homes, businesses and other places quickly when needed.
The Communications Authority
of Kenya has played a key role in advancing the initiative, including
spearheading the draft National Addressing System Bill, 2025, alongside
national addressing standards developed jointly with the Kenya Bureau of
Standards.
The benchmarking engagement
provides the Lesotho Communications Authority with an opportunity to gain
insights into Kenya’s approach to developing and regulating a national
addressing framework as Lesotho considers similar initiatives.
The CA said hosting the
engagement forms part of its broader commitment to regional regulatory
cooperation and the strengthening of ICT ecosystems across Africa.
As more African countries
explore national addressing systems to support digital commerce, public
services and emergency response, exchanges between regulators are providing an
avenue for sharing experiences and shaping how such systems are designed, implemented
and governed.
