Promoting Digital Inclusion through Legal Identity Governance in Namibia
Published: 28/Oct/2024
Source: UNDP
By Yrika Maritz, Head of Experimentation
Over the past few months, I have had the privilege of working with UNDP’s Chief Digital Office by engaging in focused discussions with the Ministry of Home Affairs, Immigration, Safety and Security in Namibia regarding the governance of digital legal identity. As the custodian of Namibia’s national population register, the Ministry plays a key role in shaping how citizens can safely and securely prove their identity in both physical and digital contexts.
Digital legal identity is crucial for ensuring access to essential services like healthcare, education, and social benefits, while also enabling economic participation through secure banking and e-commerce. It supports civic engagement by facilitating secure voting and legal recognition. UNDP’s focus is on providing assistance to the government in the establishment of a robust legal and regulatory framework, enhancing institutional capacity, and promoting inclusivity and innovation. Our approach in consulting diverse stakeholders to address privacy and security concerns, aims to foster digital inclusion and ensures that all Namibians, including those in underserved communities, can benefit from digital transformation. The background to our journey can be found in Part 1 and Part 2.
Join us in Part 3 of this blog series as we describe the assessment process of Namibia’s digital legal identity landscape using UNDP’s Model Governance Framework and reflect on some of the key lessons learned for future endeavours.
Read further: https://www.undp.org/namibia/blog/promoting-digital-inclusion-through-legal-identity-governance-namibia