Cameroon expands education digitalization with student digital ID program

Students across secondary schools in Cameroon will soon have an official digital ID card, thanks to a partnership between the Ministry of Secondary Education and telecommunications company MTN Cameroon.

The information was disclosed recently as both parties signed an addendum to an existing Memorandum of Understanding (MoU), the Ministry announced in a statement.

The student digital ID will be the consolidation of a measure that was introduced in 2024 to assign a unique identification number to every secondary school student. The number is obtained by each student submitting their personal information through a dedicated portal provided by the ministry. Once the information is keyed into the portal, the number is automatically generated by the system and linked to the profile of the student.

Secondary Education Minister, Prof. Nalova Lyonga, said at the time that the unique identification number will streamline the student management process throughout their secondary and high school journey.

The planned digital ID, according to the agreement, will be linked to a unified database which contains information about a student’s academic, financial and disciplinary records. Officials say this will make it easier for schools to track performance, manage transfers, and ensure that records remain consistent across institutions.

During the signing ceremony, Lyonga said the reason for introducing the student digital ID is to put in place a secure student governance system as the country’s secondary education sector advances its digital transformation push.

Beyond the issuance of official digital ID cards, the recent MoU addendum signed with MTN Mobile Money Corporation, the fintech subsidiary of MTN Cameroon, also seeks to strengthen the digitization of school-related payments.

Lyonga noted that the digital payment initiative will not only boost financial transparency within the school milieu, but also bring the administration closer to parents by helping them to “save time and gain efficiency.”

Alain Nono, CEO of MTN Mobile Money Corporation, lauded the partnership saying it will “further streamline, secure, and simplify financial transactions related to the school environment.” He added that the initiative aligns with MTN’s vision of supporting Cameroon’s digital economy development and building a trusted digital payments system.

Per the agreement, the student digital ID will be used to facilitate identity verification for digital financial transactions, to reduce fraud and enhance transparency in the payment of either school or examination fees. The system is expected to cut down on cash handling in schools, a practice that has often been criticized for its lack of accountability.

The Ministry of Secondary Education has in the past years been involved in different digital transformation initiatives aimed at modernizing Cameroon’s secondary education management.

Apart from its collaboration with the telecommunications company, the ministry also has other partnerships pursuing different aspects. These include distance learning and digital resource programs, teacher training in digital skills, and the gradual integration of e‑libraries to support the learning process. Officials say these efforts are part of the government’s plan to align Cameroon’s education sector with global digital standards.

Aside the school digital ID, students who are 18 years, or above, in Cameroon are mandatorily required to obtain the national digital ID, whose new generation was launched in February last year.

The initiative reflects a growing trend of governments extending digital identity systems into specific sectors such as education, healthcare and social services. In several countries including Ethiopia, India, Nigeria, US and Ireland, student digital IDs are increasingly being used to connect records, payments and administrative services through a single digital identity framework.

Article Topics

Cameroon  |  digital ID  |  digital public infrastructure  |  identity management  |  student ID