Ethiopia moves to enable Fayda digital ID for domestic flights

Ethiopia’s national digital identity could soon be used as the travel document by people boarding domestic flights, following a Memorandum of Understanding signed by Ethiopian Airlines and the NIDP and reported by the ENA.

The MoU commits the partners to working collaboratively on integrating the Fayda digital ID with airport systems.

Ethiopian Airlines is also working towards the introduction of biometric passenger processing for various steps along the travel journey, from booking to boarding. The move is intended to improve passenger experiences while increasing operational efficiency.

The government has been rapidly implementing Fayda across various sectors for similar reasons as part of a broader digital government strategy. Recent examples include an integration agreement with the country’s procurement authority.

Abiyot Bayou senior advisor to Ethiopia’s Minister of Innovation and Technology, explained the current digital government strategy as the third step in its transformation. The earlier stages involved applications developed independently by different institutions. Bayou refers to the newer, integrated system as “GO.”

“When the GO stake is in place, we will have the integration of payment system, ID card, the registration and other data exchange systems at the center,” he said.

“So, the presence of Fayda Digital ID,” Bayou says, will “solve many problems.”

For international travels, Ethiopia has been working with ICAO in preparation for a rollout of biometric passports.

Article Topics

airport biometrics  |  digital ID  |  Ethiopia  |  Ethiopia National ID Program (NIDP)  |  Fayda  |  identity verification