India G20 Task Force report defines course of global DPI development

A report that is expected to influence the trajectory of digital public infrastructure (DPI) development around the world and strengthen the foundation for implementation has been released by a team of representatives from Indian institutions.

The report of India’s G20 Task Force on Digital Public Infrastructure, released July 15, details the role of DPI in the development of India’s digital economy and how that can be replicated elsewhere to drive economic transformation, financial inclusion and digital government.

It its divided into three parts and proposes a model of DPI development that should be globally applicable through a set of agreed standards. The first part looks at the deployment of technological solutions to address development challenges using the DPI approach, the second lays bare India’s DPI strides across all the three major components of the India Stack, while the third presents guidelines and policy recommendations for improving DPI development.

The 11-member Task Force was put in place during India’s presidency of the G20 which made the development of DPI a priority. It also pushed for a clear definition and implementation framework for these technological building blocks to help countries meet their Sustainable Development Goals (SDGs).

The three-part report also highlights the crucial role which partnership between the public and private sectors can play in building DPI for sustainable growth.

In comments following the launch of the report, India’s G20 Sherpa and co-chair of the Task Force, Shri Amitabh Kant, said DPI enabled the country to achieve in nine years what would have taken 50 years without it.

“India did an incredible pole vault in Digital Public Infrastructure. Today in India, UPI is used at all levels from street vendors to large shopping malls, with the highest percentage of digital transactions globally, accounting for nearly 46 percent share,” said Kant.

“All these proved to be building blocks for India to steer through the COVID-19 pandemic, be it transfer $4.5 billion into the bank accounts of 160 million beneficiaries or facilitate distribution of 2.5 million vaccinations in two years with digital vaccine certificates on mobiles. We are far advanced in terms of digitization and I am confident, this report will be the guiding North Star for the world to follow.”

In his own remarks, the other co-chair of the Task Force and founding chairman of the Unique Identification Authority of India (UIDAI), Shri Nandan Nilekani, said for all those seeking rapid socio-economic development, DPI is the way to go as it “has the power to dramatically improve the lives of citizens and transform governance.”

“It has happened here in India and it started with the Aadhaar ID system, aimed at providing a digital identity to every Indian. Now, around 1.3 billion Indians possess this digital ID and on average 10 million eKYC per day is being facilitated through Aadhaar,” he notes.

“Meanwhile in payment, UPI facilitates 13 billion transactions monthly, serving about 350 million individuals and 50 million merchants and DPI enabled direct transfer has saved government $41 billion across central government schemes. Therefore, it’s no longer a choice or a luxury, DPI is essential to get to where we want. This Report will play a key role in defining the future course of DPI approach and actions around the globe.”

A number of countries have expressed interest in the UPI and the report mentions that the National Payments Corporation of India – the body overseeing the UPI – is working to expand the reach of the platform to over 80 countries, with MoUs already concluded with partners in more than 20 of them.

The proposals contained in the Task Force report are expected to be followed up during the G20 presidency currently held by Brazil and the one after to be held by South Africa.

India’s DPI empowering citizens, inspiring the world

Meanwhile, a clip of a movie produced by The Center for Digital Public Infrastructure takes a look at India’s DPI journey and how it is “empowering citizens and inspiring the world.”

The clip presents how owners of bakeries and other retail shops have seen their businesses grow in a short time span thanks to India’s digital payments infrastructure.

One retail store owner in Bangalore says unlike in the past where they struggled with issues of making change for his customers, about 70 percent of them now pay for items in his store using their mobile phones.

Apart from the digital payments system, employees also reveal how DigiLocker – the third component of the India Stack which ensures verifiable credentials issuance for secure data sharing – is helping cut cost and time in background verification processes for recruitments.

As highlighted in the report, India’s digital transformation and innovation journey didn’t happen by chance, but is rather “a product of meticulous planning and deliberate design.”

Nilekani, the founding chairman of UIDAI, and a chief architect of the Aadhaar system, Pramod Varma, also share their views about India’s digital transformation journey from the beginning of the Aadhaar in the club.

The clip features information about the technology and design approach to the India Stack, challenges faced and how they’ve been dealt with, the future of DPI and global adoption, the importance and impact of DPI, as well as practical advice to countries looking to implement DPI projects.

Britain is one the nations that could benefit from following India’s lead on DPI, former Indian Technology Minister Rajeev Chandrasekhar told the Tony Blair Institute’s 2024 Future of Britain Conference.

Chandrasekhar declined to explicitly recommend that the UK adopt a national digital identity, but states that India’s digital ID is “the core to a digital government architecture which has in many ways transformed the narrative of India.”

Article Topics

Aadhaar  |  biometrics  |  digital government  |  digital ID  |  digital public infrastructure  |  G20  |  India