MOSIP open digital identity initiative partners up to enhance platform for developing countries

A new partnership to promote robust digital identity as a global public good has been formed by the International Institute of Information Technology, Bangalore (IIIT-B) and the Norwegian Agency for Development Cooperation (Norad) to develop MOSIP, the Modular Open-Source Identity Platform.

The strategic partnership between IIIT-B and Norad is intended accelerate the achievement of the UN’s Sustainable Development Goals (SDGs) through digital identity, according to the announcement. SDG 16.9 seeks the provision of universal legal identity and free birth registration by the year 2030.

MOSIP is an open source platform for foundational ID backed by the Bill & Melinda Gates Foundation, Sir Ratan Tata Trust and Omidyar Network, with the aim of breaking down vendor lock-in.  It is available on GitHub, and intended to provide scalable, secure and privacy-preserving foundational ID systems. MOSIP Legal Counsel Srijoni Sen told Biometric Update in an interview when the platform was launched at ID4Africa 2018 that the open, modular system “enables interchangeability of service providers.”

IIIT-B has led the project’s development, and is joined by Norad in enhancing the platform to meet the needs of low and middle-income countries adopting it to stand up modern, interoperable national digital ID systems. The partnership is also expected to enable MOSIP to move forward with its plans to expand the contributor and commercial ecosystems around it.

“Norad brings its deep experience in enabling technology solutions to address complex problems in healthcare, education, and poverty alleviation,” states IIIT-B Director Professor S. Sadagopan. “DHIS2, the Open Source health information system adopted by over 70 countries and supported by Norad, is a shining example of their vision. We look forward to a long and impactful association with Norad.”

Norad is the specialized development cooperation agency within Norway’s Ministry of Foreign Affairs, and has been funding and leading open source projects for years.

MOSIP is already in use by the governments of Morocco and the Philippines.

Article Topics

biometrics  |  digital identity  |  Identification for Development (ID4D)  |  identity management  |  MOSIP (Modular Open Source Identity Platform)  |  open source  |  SDG 16.9