In the modern world it’s easy to characterize physical ID documents as outdated and irrelevant. But to do so would be to overlook the practical realities, and ubiquitous adoption, of these durable physical credentials.

We live in a world where the movement towards mobile and digital formats for a wide variety of identity documents – such as national IDs and driver licenses – is already underway. Indeed, the COVID-19 public health crisis has served to propel Governments to accelerate digital (mobile) ID adoption so locked-down citizens could still securely access a range of digital public and private services. Everything from registering a child’s birth to collecting pension payments, and using their digital ID to prove their ‘key worker’ status and permission to travel.

But that doesn’t mean that the physical ID document is no longer needed. Rather than simply being replaced by new digital formats, they continue to be the pre-requisite for the overall success of many schemes.

Ouverte par le Premier ministre de Namibie, la troisième conférence bilingue (français-anglais) du mouvement ID4Africa (1) a réuni près de 1000 des acteurs de l’identité numérique à Windhoek en Namibie, de plus de 30 pays.

A best practices and recommendations guide

October 2022

Today the refreshed Principles on Identification for Sustainable development were published. Secure Identity Alliance is proud to have once again been asked to contribute to this important body of work to ensure that these updated Principles reflect today’s changing world and its own vision of supporting the provision of legal, trusted identity for all.

Five years ago the Secure Identity Alliance, along with other organisations committed to the development of ID systems that are inclusive, trusted, and accountable and supported the development of a set of shared ‘Principles for Good Identification’.

PUBLIC STATEMENT

President of the Federal Republic of Nigeria Muhammadu Buhari is showing the NIMC (National Identity Management Commission) NIN (National Identity Number) slip – that can be verified against the central national ID database leveraging OSIA interface

by Kristel Teyras, Chair of the Digital ID Working Group of the Secure Identity Alliance

With governments poised to accelerate national digital ID programs, the SIA commissioned a study to uncover lessons learned from innovative, real-life digital ID deployments around the world.

Providing unprecedented ‘on the ground’ insights and perspectives, the study produced in partnership with onepoint gives a unique voice to stakeholders from 25 innovative sovereign digital ID schemes. Their shared learnings highlight the guiding principles and good practices that are critical for driving usage, adoption, and success – regardless of the digital ID model adopted.

How to address the challenge of enabling the delivery of trusted mobile ID that’s secure, convenient, and easy for citizens to use

Digital identity sits at the heart of economic and social transformation. Around the globe, governments are busy fast-tracking the delivery of streamlined e-services that touch every aspect of people’s lives – from paying tax to accessing healthcare and education.

An immediate analysis of the coronavirus crisis highlights, among other things, the significant and growing role of technology in general, and digital identity in particular, in helping citizens, businesses and government agencies adapt and respond.

With citizens in many countries forced into homeworking and home-schooling, most at incredibly short notice, many millions turned to digital tools to communicate, collaborate, work and transact online. While these proved helpful for knowledge workers and those businesses with flexible (and often cloud-based) IT infrastructures, the crisis uncovered huge areas for improvement.

This was particularly clear when it came to access to the provision of public services – many of which lacked a cohesive digital alternative to face to face interactions. At the heart of the issue was the lack of a digital identity that would allow citizens to securely access services remotely.

For those citizens unable to access basic public services and social protections in a digital context, this lack of a digital identity and a connected ecosystem of digital service caused considerable problems.

This, Secure Identity Alliance (SIA) believes, is one of the key learnings to take away from the crisis. A secure and universally trusted digital identity, based on a government root and sourced from civil registries, is fundamental to the development of a wider ecosystem of both public and private services.

16-17-18 NOVEMBER 2020 - 100% ONLINE

14-15 OCTOBER 2020, 100% ONLINE

REARRANGED TO 22-23 OCTOBER 2020 - 100% ONLINE

Replay Available here: https://id4africa.com/livecast8-digital-identity-emergency-response/

Nomination acknowledges the pioneering work of the Secure Identity Alliance in supporting the development of secure and trusted digital identities for all.

5-8 April 2020, Las Vegas, USA - POSTPONED - Watch Online instead!

9-11 March 2020, Washington DC

As Digital ID becomes a day-to-day reality for ever greater numbers of public stakeholders and citizens across the globe, our goal is to continue to accelerate the adoption of secure access and authentication solutions that will continue to drive the digital ID agenda forward.

24-26 April 2018, The Abuja International Convention Centre, Abuja, Nigeria

10-11 October 2017, Bogota, Colombia

26th-28th April 2017, Windhoek, Namibia

The 3rd Government Forum on Electronic Identity in Africa will be hosted by the Ministry of Home Affairs and Immigration (MHAI) of the Government of Namibia on 26-28 April, 2017 in Windhoek, Namibia.

This year’s theme is PATHWAYS TO DIGITAL IDENTITY

This theme recognizes that while the end goal of digital identity for all may be the same, the path for each country to arrive there is different. Country-specific factors such as context, existing identity assets, development priorities, and capacity must be taken into consideration in crafting a national strategy for the development of the digital identity ecosystem for any given country.

How to do this will be part of the overall agenda of the 3rd ID4Africa Annual Meeting 2017.Site Web : www.id4africa.com/

While the concept of identity (ID) remains unchanged, the rapid evolution of digital technology has dramatically extended both its application and form factor.