Bhutan boosts digital ID sign-ups, Philippines and Barbados face struggles

Bhutan is steadily boosting the number of its digital ID users while the Philippines struggles with delays and Barbados with citizen distrust.

Bhutan sees rise in sign-ups

Since the launch of Bhutan’s blockchain-based digital ID just over three months ago, more than 19,000 people have requested a foundational ID, which is issued while launching the National Digital Identity (NDI) app.

Face biometrics currently plays a significant role in Bhutan’s NDI. Users first have to perform biometric authentication to be issued a foundational ID issuance and create the wallet and then every time the Bhutan wallet is opened.

The Himalayan country has slowly been integrating the self-sovereign identity (SSI) scheme into government services. It is eliminating its single sign-on method for government services and will require citizens to use their NDI wallet or sign up for individual services. The wallet will also be expanded to include services from finance, education, telecommunications, tax, health and utilities, according to national newspaper Kuensel.

The country completed an education and advocacy pilot program across three districts in mid-December and is currently preparing to cover more districts with a new campaign for the digital ID.

The total population of Bhutan is just over 800,000 people.

Philippines: 55 million citizens now have digital ID

Around 55 million people in the Philippines now have access to the digital version of their Philippine Identification System Cards (PhilSys ID), significantly less than the 80 million goal set by the government for 2023, Business Mirror reports.

The slowdown has been expected: In September, the Department of Information and Communications Technology (DICT), in charge of creating PhilSys, criticized the Philippine Statistics Authority over the poor quality of biometric data it collected. Affected PhilSys users were required to “revalidate” their biometrics data before receiving digital IDs.

PhilSys was launched in 2020 with the government promising that PhilSys Number registration and the issuance of the Philippine Identification (PhilID) would be completed by the end of 2022.

Barbados pleads with citizens to take up digital ID

Barbados’ decades-old laminated identification cards are nearing its final hours but the country’s citizens are still wary of the new digital ID.

The Caribbean state’s new Minister of Industry, Innovation, Science and Technology Marsha Caddle has urged its citizens to embrace digital IDs as old ID cards will no longer be valid after January 31st.

Fueled by public distrust over privacy concerns, the issue has turned political. The Democratic Labour Party has urged citizens not to adopt the new digital cards. In response, the Minister has suggested that the office of the Data Commissioner should take over the task of reassuring Barbadians that the data to which the state has access will be protected, according to Barbados Today.

“That is a key part of what the Ministry of Industry, Science and Technology will have to continue to do going forward,” she says.

Despite friction among citizens, Barbados plans to continue its digital ID rollout in 2024.

Article Topics

Barbados  |  Bhutan  |  Bhutan NDI  |  biometrics  |  digital ID  |  PhilID  |  Philippines