By Flora Iweanya
RABAT, Morocco — African governments have been urged to move beyond fragmented pilot projects and commit to building national-scale Digital Public Infrastructure (DPI) systems that are open, secure and nationally owned.
The call came as delegates gathered for the third edition of the MOSIP Connect conference, which kicked off on Wednesday, February 11, 2026 and runs through Friday, February 13, 2026, in Rabat, Morocco. Nearly 500 participants from close to 40 countries including government representatives, technology partners, civil-society stakeholders and innovators are attending the event.
The conference was addressed by Prof. Debabrata Das, Director of the International Institute of Information Technology Bangalore, who stressed that DPI must progress beyond experimental phases to truly serve citizens.
“DPI cannot remain at the pilot stage indefinitely,” Prof. Das said. “For it to deliver real public value, it must be open-source, secure, respect national and data sovereignty, and be designed to evolve with changing policies, technologies and citizen needs.”
Digital Public Infrastructure refers to government-backed digital systems such as national digital ID platforms, e-government portals, digital payment systems and integrated health and social service databases designed to provide secure and efficient services to citizens.
Progress Across Africa
Several African countries are already making notable strides.
In Ghana, the national ID system widely known as the Ghana Card has been integrated with banking services, SIM registration and social service delivery. Meanwhile, Rwanda has achieved over 90 percent adult coverage with digital IDs linked to multiple public services.
Kenya’s Maisha Namba programme aims to consolidate multiple identity databases into a single unified system. However, despite such advances, many initiatives across the continent remain fragmented or limited in scope, preventing full nationwide impact.
Prof. Das outlined six guiding principles for next-generation DPI development: adoption of open-source technology, respect for national and data sovereignty, neutrality in partnerships, system reusability, commitment to national-scale deployment and adaptability to evolving needs.
He emphasized that successful national digital systems require three critical elements working in tandem: strong technology platforms and standards, governance structures to ensure accountability, and institutional and user capacity to adopt the systems.
“Without all three, pilot programmes risk failing to scale,” he warned.
Nigeria Reaffirms Commitment to Secure, Inclusive Digital Identity
Also at the conference, the Director-General of the National Identity Management Commission (NIMC), Engr. Abisoye Coker-Odusote, reiterated Nigeria’s resolve to build a secure, inclusive and globally aligned digital identity system.
“Nigeria is deliberate about building a digital identity system that is secure, inclusive and globally aligned,” she said. “We recognise that digital identity is foundational to effective governance, efficient service delivery and meaningful economic inclusion.”
She highlighted progress in expanding enrolment for the National Identification Number (NIN), describing it as a decisive step in broadening Nigerians’ access to public and private services.
“We have made notable gains in the expansion of NIN enrollment across the country,” Coker-Odusote said. “Each enrollment strengthens our national database and brings more Nigerians into the formal digital ecosystem.”
According to her, digital identity extends beyond numbers.
“It is not just about issuing a number,” she said. “It is about giving citizens access to banking, telecommunications, healthcare, social protection and other essential services.”
Coker-Odusote said Nigeria’s alignment with MOSIP would enhance the security, interoperability and credibility of the country’s identity infrastructure.
“Our collaboration with MOSIP will strengthen the integrity of our identity system,” she said. “It will improve interoperability, enhance security architecture and help ensure that our framework aligns with global best practices.”
She noted that Nigeria’s participation in the conference is not merely to showcase achievements but to learn from global best practices.
“We are here to deepen technical cooperation, explore innovative solutions and adopt global standards that will accelerate Nigeria’s digital transformation agenda,” she said.
Reassuring citizens about privacy, Coker-Odusote said: “Data protection and privacy are at the core of our identity programme. As we scale enrollment and integrate digital identity across sectors, we are equally strengthening safeguards to protect citizens’ data.”
She stressed that public trust is essential.
“A digital identity system can only thrive where there is public confidence,” she said. “We are committed to transparency, accountability and continuous improvement to maintain that trust.”
Governance and Trust Take Centre Stage
Abdelhak Harrak, Director of Information Systems and Telecommunications at Morocco’s Ministry of the Interior, underscored that strong governance is as essential as technology for successful digital identity systems.
“The success of a digital identification system does not rely solely on technical solutions, however advanced they may be,” Harrak said. “It also depends on strong governance and the sustained mobilisation of teams responsible for managing complex transformations involving numerous field actors.”
He added: “Technology alone cannot drive change; it is the alignment of people, processes and purpose that turns innovation into lasting impact.”
Citizen consent and trust were recurring themes throughout the conference. Speakers such as Nagarajan Santhanam, Chief Dissemination Officer of MOSIP, and Rosemary Kisembo, Executive Director of Uganda’s National Identification and Registration Authority, called for transparent communication about how citizens’ data is collected, stored and used.
Edson Guyai, Director of ID Management in Tanzania, noted that Tanzania’s linkage of 70 million SIM cards to national ID cards was achieved largely due to public trust.
Biometrics also featured prominently. While facial and iris recognition were acknowledged as useful in certain contexts, fingerprints remain the foundation of most national ID systems due to their reliability.
Innovation Spotlight: MOSIP Create 2026
The second edition of MOSIP Create concluded during the conference, highlighting innovative, market-ready solutions that leverage digital identity to expand access and inclusion.
“This year, 75 ideas and more than 25 completed solutions were submitted,” said Prof. S. Rajagopalan, President of MOSIP. “From these, 15 finalists were rigorously evaluated and eight winners emerged.”
Winners included:
- VSOneWorld and Asthra Health Tech for healthcare continuity solutions;
- Ooru Digital for ISO-compliant mobile driver’s licences and verifiable credentials;
- Educerts for linking digital credentials to financial aid;
- ECS for secure academic credential verification;
- Xnterprise Consultancy Services for secure delivery of digitally signed documents; and
- Tech5 for its OmniTrust platform powering Ethiopia’s FaydaPass.
“We are honoured to receive this recognition,” said Sandeep Thoppil, CEO and founder of Xnterprise Consultancy Services. “Digital identity is transforming how governments and citizens interact, and we are proud to create secure, trusted and seamless digital services for everyone.”
Expanding Access Through Innovation
Beyond the winners, the event showcased emerging technologies from firms such as Kaizen Secure Voiz, which offers voice biometric authentication, and Simprints, a UK-based nonprofit developing biometric solutions to improve transparency in global development.
Antony Vendhan, co-founder of Identy, highlighted efforts to expand biometric capture using standard smartphones to reach underserved communities with secure digital identities.
“Our technology supports biometric capture using standard smartphones, issues digital identities and facilitates large-scale verification,” he said. “This approach enables governments to reach underserved communities while opening pathways to new economic opportunities.”
As African countries accelerate digital transformation efforts, speakers at MOSIP Connect 2026 agreed that scaling secure, citizen-centric and nationally owned digital identity systems will be critical to driving inclusive growth and sustainable development across the continent.
This report is produced under DPI Africa Journalism Fellowship Programme of the Media Foundation for West Africa and Co-develop.
