Digital ID trust cannot be fully automated, it needs the human layer: GITEX Africa panel

A panel at the recent GITEX Africa 2026 event, which took place from April 7–9 in the imperial Moroccan city of Marrakech, described digital ID trust as something achievable not only through multi-stakeholder collaboration but also by building a strong human layer.

Three panelists from government and the private sector shared their perspectives on how collaboration between the parties involved can sustain the digital identity and trust momentum currently being built around the world.

The focus of the panel, moderated by CNBC Australia’s Amanda Drury, was on how such partnerships can boost the adoption of digital services made available to citizens across sectors, in order to improve their daily lives.

El Hadji Malick Gueye, General Director for Senegal at fintech startup Wave; Dr. Muhammad Sharif, Advisor for Science and Environment at the Rabat-based Islamic World Educational, Scientific and Cultural Organization (ICESCO); and Dr. P.C. Jaffer, Secretary to the Government in charge of budget and resources for the Indian State of Karnataka, all emphasized the undeniable role of trust in digital ID.

Gueye described trust as a fundamental pillar of every country’s digital ecosystem but opined that it cannot be entirely automated. He and the other speakers agreed that technology alone will not convince people to trust digital identity systems. Instead, trust must be built through human networks, inclusive governance, and practical technical literacy among decision-makers.

This is exactly what they are doing at Wave, he said. Wave, which describes itself as the first unicorn in Francophone Africa, operates in ten West and Central African countries and is one of the fintechs working to deepen financial inclusion across the continent.

“Trust is vital, especially in Africa, where human contact remains very important. Even though we are a digital company, we deliberately maintain a vast network of agents. Across Africa, we have 150,000 agents,” Gueye said.

“They act as our first ambassadors. They explain the product, help customers understand the process, and reassure them. Even in countries like Senegal, where we have reached a level of saturation, they continue to help us push our development further. The reality is that trust cannot be fully automated. That is why we leverage our agents to continue our growth dynamic.”

Sharif stated that in building trust, cooperation is a very important aspect, and that is one of the priorities of their work at ICESCO.

“At ICESCO, we are firmly convinced of one thing: the importance of international cooperation. We actively foster it,” he said, adding that networking is one of the key pillars of their work as an intergovernmental, non-profit organisation that operates through a large setup of national commissions.

For Jaffer, building a solid human layer to enhance digital trust entails a great deal, including improving technical capacity and enabling a full understanding of the technology involved.

“That is a very significant challenge because most of the people who manage government programs do not come from a technology background, and they need not. They do not need to know every nuance of the technology,” he said.

“However, designing any digital system actually requires two distinct sets of skills. First, you need a very clear understanding of your domain or sector. Second, you need a certain level of technical literacy, not necessarily the ability to write code, but an understanding of the broader architecture, business processes, and the kinds of algorithms suited to the task at hand,” he stated.

He added that with constant work on different systems over time, it is possible to acquire that knowledge.

“Myself, I come from a humanities background. My formal qualifications are in education, but through experience, I have developed an understanding of how to design digital projects and can engage meaningfully with technical teams. The key thing is being able to translate your sectoral knowledge and requirements into language a technical person can understand,” he shared.

To support his point about capacity building, the official cited the work being done by the International Institute of Information Technology in Bangalore (IIIT-B), where MOSIP, a major global player in trusted digital ID today, was incubated.

He added that programs such as IIIT-B’s cover questions including what kind of digital ID platform to use, whether to opt for open-source or proprietary solutions, and what database structures are appropriate at different scales.

The speakers also shared their thoughts about what role AI-powered identity verification systems can play in bolstering digital ID trust.

“We do leverage AI, and it plays an important role. However, we have to be careful. Simply importing AI solutions developed elsewhere and applying them directly to our markets is not the right approach. I fully agree with my colleague’s earlier point about the need for contextual adaptation. AI has to be fitted to the specific ways people interact with digital systems in our African context,” Gueye advised.

According to Jaffer, the difficulty in building digital ID systems that enable smoother and faster access to government services is huge, but it is possible for countries to keep pace with those expectations by designing better systems which they can continue to upgrade, and ensure data security and privacy.

Article Topics

Africa  |  digital ID infrastructure  |  digital identity  |  digital trust  |  GITEX Africa 2026