NAIROBI, Kenya Oct 6 –Unclaimed Financial Assets Authority (UFAA) has launched a new digital platform to facilitate easier filing, processing and disbursement of funds and assets.
UFAA Chairman Richard Kiplagat said that the monies in the trust are invested in government to ensure there is no risk.
Kiplagat said that UFAA looks forward to doubling the number of claims for reunifying.
The authority said that it aims to provide customer-friendly services and to make their service available in Huduma Centers across the country.
He said the authority intends to do away with manual filing of claims to facilitate easier processing and disbursement of unclaimed financial assets in cash, bonds, stocks and other financial assets.
In place of this manual system, an online system has been developed and deployed to facilitate filing, processing and disbursement of unclaimed financial assets to rightful owners and beneficiaries.
The Authority is also deploying an online holders’ reporting and surrenders system that will make it easier for holders to submit and surrender unclaimed financial assets in their possession.
UFAA Chairman said that the authority will be working with the office of the Auditor-General to facilitate audits of public sector agencies on compliance with unclaimed financial assets reporting and surrender.
The move aims to ensure the growth of the compliance rate by holding institutions.
“A big milestone for the Authority is its partnership with Huduma Kenya. The Authority is in advanced discussions with Huduma Kenya to roll out UFAA’s services at Huduma Centers and Huduma Mashinani across 47 counties in the country. This is through a collaborative service framework at the Huduma Centres to allow access of UFAA services,” the authority said.
According to UFAA, surrendered assets have grown exponentially from Sh 300 million in 2014 to the current value of Sh 20.3billion in cash and one billion units of shares in the last seven years.
The Authority has also received cumulative claims amounting to Sh 1.2 billion from 17,469 claimants so far.
UFAA is an authority created under the Unclaimed Financial Assets Act, No 40 of 2011 to administer unclaimed financial assets. UFAA’s primary focus is to receive unclaimed financial assets from the holders, safeguard the assets and reunite the assets to their rightful owner.
