The importance of ID access in three charts: Insights from Sub-Saharan Africa
Published: 9/Sep/2024
Source: World Bank ID4D
By Saniya Ansar & Julia Clark
“Can you please show me your ID?”
This is a question that people around the world hear every day as they run errands, like buying a SIM card or opening a bank account. In Sub-Saharan Africa, adults may also need to show ID to receive government benefit payments or to register their children for school. Without an ID, people often find themselves shut out from basic services, like opening a bank account, getting a loan, or even buying a SIM card. Even for making payments, they might be stuck carrying cash—risking theft—or taking time off work just to transfer money in person. All of this adds up, lack of ID can make it harder to access essential services that enhance economic mobility and security in their daily lives. Legal identity has been prioritized as an SDG target and many governments are exploring the potential of national ID systems—including digital ID. Digital IDs are becoming increasingly prevalent as governments transition to online verification systems. This form of national identification can help overcome the barriers of cost and distance. With standards and regulations, digital IDs can also reduce the risk of cyber theft and provide a secure, convenient way to access online services and payments.
Uganda, for example, saved around $7 million in a single year by using a national identification database to verify the identities of its civil servants. Malawi saved $44 million by merging its voter registration and national ID systems.
Despite this potential for economic and efficiency gains, access to a government-issued ID continues to be uneven across the African continent – limiting access to government services and digital platforms, which are foundational enablers of financial inclusion.
This blog provides an overview of ID ownership in Sub-Saharan Africa, drawing on survey data from randomly selected adults in 36 countries. This research is a collaborative effort between the World Bank’s Global Findex and Identification for Development (ID4D) Initiatives which have collected two rounds of global data on access and barriers to ID ownership since 2017. The most recent data find that an estimated 850 million people around the world do not have official identification—primarily people in lower-income countries and marginalized and vulnerable groups, of which approximately 470 million are in Sub-Saharan Africa. Here we look at some of the key trends in the region.
Read further: https://blogs.worldbank.org/en/digital-development/the-importance-of-id-access-in-three-charts–insights-from-sub-s
Link to policy note Trends in Access to ID in Sub-Saharan Africa