Mauritania launches digital ID app to boost access to services and improve governance

Mauritania has launched a pilot program for a new digital ID app, aimed at enhancing access to essential services and improving governance. This initiative, spearheaded by the United Nations Development Program (UNDP), seeks to provide verifiable digital identities to the Mauritania population.

In 2022, the request for proposals was issued by the UNDP for an open source digital identity pilot in Mauritania that adheres to privacy by design principles and follows industry standards.

Two years later, UNDP unveiled in a blog post that it is working with the Ministry of Digital Transformation, Innovation and Public Sector Modernization (MTNIMA) on developing a mobile-based digital identity tool called e-ID Mauritania.

Tech5 is contributing technology to the project, along with local partner SmartMS, Tech5 CSO Rob Haslam revealed in a LinkedIn post.

The digital ID app will enable residents to authenticate their identity online, in a bid to increase social inclusion, reduce fraud, and streamline administrative processes. Mauritania’s initiative aligns with broader global trends towards digital public infrastructure (DPI), which have been highlighted as crucial for rapid global adoption by experts at the Carnegie Endowment for International Peace.

According to Carnegie, DPI encompasses essential digital systems like digital identification, digital payments, and data exchange platforms, which collectively enhance service delivery and economic development. The organization emphasizes the need for robust, inclusive DPI to bridge digital divides and support sustainable development, especially in emerging economies.

However, the expansion of DPI is not without challenges. A meeting held by Caribou Digital and the UNDP highlighted specific risks associated with digital transformation. Government-led DPI initiatives can face challenges related to internal capacity for system development and procurement. Additionally, interoperability, a core feature of DPI, can disrupt traditional commercial models by commoditizing services like identity verification and payments. The emphasis on open source presents risks of ‘abandonware,’ necessitating government capacity to manage infrastructure sustainability, Medium reports.

Caribou Digital emphasized the importance of understanding whether interventions are truly DPI in nature and the differences they make compared to generic digital transformation approaches, calling for robust monitoring and evaluation frameworks to assess the impact of DPI initiatives.

This post was updated at 1:37pm Eastern on August 5, 2024 to include the involvement of Tech5 and its partner in the pilot project.

Article Topics

Africa  |  biometrics  |  Caribou Digital  |  digital ID  |  digital identity  |  digital public infrastructure  |  e-ID Mauritania  |  Mauritania  |  SmartMS  |  TECH5  |  UNDP