Photo: UNDP Mauritania
Digital identities are crucial for seamless experiences at the interface when a citizen wants to access a digital public service. It is part of the digital transformation journeys that countries like Mauritania are committed to as they continually take a digital public infrastructure approach. The UNDP, as a development agency playing a critical role in helping countries achieve their Sustainable Development Goals, stresses that implementing a user-friendly and secure design builds towards “exacerbating existing inequalities” in how different people can access digital public services and build towards inclusivity.
44% of the population living in rural areas need digital interventions such as connectivity and digital infrastructure to be brought back into society and have their digital identity on file to access everyday services. To date, Mauritania has built a digital identity system however the government is reviewing what enhancements could transform safeguards and privacy, accessibility for people living in poor connectivity areas, as well as the usability of e-ID Mauritania.
The pilots to develop the e-ID, in partnership with the UNDP and the Ministry of Digital Transformation, Innovation and Public Sector Modernization in Mauritania, have produced four takeaways.
- To establish a steering body for key decision-making
- Support robust governance
- Prioritise stakeholders
- Choose open-source components
