Development – Identity Documentation

1.1 Billion ‘Invisible’ People without ID are Priority for new High Level Advisory Council on Identification for Development
PRESS RELEASE October 12, 2017

WASHINGTON, October 12, 2017— More than 1.1 billion people in the world are unable to prove their identity and therefore lack access to vital services including healthcare, social protection, education and finance. The majority live in Africa and Asia and more than a third are children who are unregistered. To help address this critical situation, today the World Bank Group’s Identification for Development (ID4D) initiative launched a High Level Advisory Council to advance the realization of robust, inclusive and responsible digital identification systems as a sustainable development priority.

At this inaugural meeting of the ID4D High Level Advisory Council—co-chaired by World Bank Group Chief Executive Officer Kristalina Georgieva and United Nations Deputy Secretary-General Amina J. Mohammed —eminent thought leaders from across the public and private sectors discussed the opportunities, challenges and emerging trends that countries face. As the first of such a group assembled on this agenda, the Council members highlighted how they can serve as ambassadors to influence the approaches of countries, development and humanitarian agencies and the private sector.

“We are at an exciting point of technology, collaboration and commitment converging to make unprecedented improvements in the lives of the 1.1 billion people living without identification, especially in vulnerable and forcibly-displaced populations,” said Georgieva. “We can use the global reach of the ID4D High Level Advisory Council to harness digital identification and maximize its transformational potential for the benefit of people who currently are not being served because they cannot be seen or heard.”

Achieving identification for all has potential to advance many key elements of the Sustainable Development Goals, including social protection, women and girls’ empowerment, financial inclusion, governance, healthcare, digital development, and humanitarian assistance. In addition to reducing a basic barrier to exercising rights and accessing services, digital identification can decrease waste and leakage in public administration, facilitate innovation in how services are delivered, and empower individuals with agency over their personal data.

“Digital identification can play an important role in achieving the sustainable development goals,” said UN Deputy-Secretary-General Amina Mohammed. “It can enable the world’s poorest and most vulnerable people to gain access to critical services, from education to healthcare and financing, while also advancing their legal and political rights. We look to this advisory council to help ensure that no one is left behind in the digital age.”

The Advisory Council will provide strategic guidance to the ID4D initiative and leverage international forums and engagements with countries to advocate its vision and the ten Principles on Identification for Sustainable Development: Towards the Digital Age.

The members of the ID4D High Level Advisory Council are:
:: Kristalina Georgieva, World Bank Group Chief Executive Officer
:: Amina J. Mohammed, United Nations Deputy Secretary-General
:: Toomas Hendrik Illves, former President of Estonia
:: Nandan Nilekani, co-founder of Infosys and Founding Chairman of Unique Identification Authority of India
:: Eric Jing, CEO of Ant Financial
:: Carolina Trivelli, former Minister of Development and Social Inclusion, Peru and Chairman of Pagos Digitales Peruanos
:: Dr. Benno Ndulu, Governor, Bank of Tanzania
:: Mo Ibrahim, Chair of the Mo Ibrahim Foundation and founder of Celtel
:: Iqbal Quadir, founder of the Legatum Center at the Massachusetts Institute of Technology (MIT) and of Grameenphone