Ethiopia to Make Digital ID Mandatory for Banking – Including Biometric Iris Recognition to Authenticate Payments

Ethiopia to Mandate Digital ID for Banking Operations

The National Bank of Ethiopia has announced a joint initiative with the National ID Program to leverage the country’s digital ID system Fayda. Through the initiative, Fayda will be the primary identification for all financial institution transactions, according to Biometric Update. The ambitious plan aims to enroll all bank customers on the digital ID platform by 2024, as part of the government’s push for greater financial inclusion.

Fayda, which means “value” in both Swahili and Arabic, may be a game changer. The implementation of Fayda as a digital ID is expected to streamline identity verification for bank users, ensuring a more efficient system that guarantees data privacy and security.

The Fayda program is supported by the World Bank and will be implemented using a Modular Open-Source Identity Platform (MOSIP), an open-source software that serves as a common framework for building national ID systems. Originating in India at the International Institute of Information Technology-Bangalore, MOSIP has gained international recognition and support from organizations including the Bill & Melinda Gates Foundation, Omidyar Network, and Tata Trusts.

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Ethiopian Digital Identification Proclamation

Whereas the establishment of a reliable Digital Identification System in Ethiopia
ensures the resident’s right to be identified, enhances the ability to exercise other
rights, improves trust between service providers and service receivers, creates a
nationwide enabling environment to ensure transparency, accountability and
efficiency.

Whereas, establishing a technologically developed, cross sectoral foundational
digital identification system, helps to plan national development effectively, create
economic transformation, ensure good governance, reduce wastage of resources,
eliminate redundancy and ensures inclusiveness when policies are designed, and
development plans are executed;

Whereas, establishing a nationwide Digital Identification system is important to
establish a reliable, accessible and secured system, and to promote the country’s
social, political and economic development and predictability, to ensure the overall
peace and security of residents and reinforcing the justice system.

Whereas it is necessary to establish a legal basis for the use of digital identification
in a comprehensive, consistent and reliable method, by establishing a digital
identification system for the registration of residents of the country and by retaining
the information of the registrants; Properly define the trust framework and legalize
the relationship between the various stakeholders of the digital identification system,
including the registrant, registrar, relying party, authentication service provider and
the Digital Identification Institution;

NOW THEREFORE, in accordance with article 55(1) of the Constitution of the
Federal Democratic Republic of Ethiopia, it is hereby proclaimed as follows.