Crossmatch unveils biometrics-based foreign assistance solution
Crossmatch unveiled a new solution aimed at combatting the global issue of fraud, waste and abuse in assistance operations around the world, at the Action on Disaster Relief conference in Panama City.
The World Food Program (WFP) reported in 2012 over $10 million in unaccounted for assistance annually, with an estimated 20 percent of all losses attributed to theft.
The Crossmatch Foreign Assistance/Disaster Relief Solution is designed to combat this problem by providing “the workflow and capability to drive accountability and traceability to assistance missions,” according to a company statement.
“Biometrics – the use of physical characteristics to identify individuals – offer a powerful tool for accountability in assistance operations,” said Ben Ball, market director with Crossmatch. “Recognizing the advantages of this technology, international organizations such as UNHCR and the WFP have started to experiment with the use of biometrics as a tool for accountability in delivery of assistance.”
The solution connects biometrics to an assistance delivery record, enabling global aid agencies to target their humanitarian efforts for optimized results.
By providing an accurate and seamless method of accounting for those individuals who receive benefits, the Crossmatch solution allows for real-time monitoring of impact in the field.
“Biometrics can also be used for internal controls – from warehouse access to tracing who is delivering assistance in the field,” Ball said. “We provide a powerful tool for preventing fraud, waste and abuse through the ‘leakage’, which is all too common in many aid supply chains.”
Previously reported, German technology integrator Hecosys have provided Crossmatch livescan devices to the Polizei Niedersachsen, which is the State Police Department of Lower Saxony in Germany.
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