National initiatives for digital ID, forensic biometrics advanced in Asia, Middle East

A number of governments located in Asia and one in the Middle East have unveiled new updates regarding the state of their national digital ID and biometric identification solutions.

More specifically, The Ministry of Technology in Sri Lanka confirmed India will aid the government to deploy its upcoming digital identity infrastructure, and the Vietnamese government has greenlit registrations for citizens’ e-ID accounts.

The Dubai government confirmed it will start collecting fingerprints for investigation purposes, and the Turkish Minister of Interior recently attended a meeting about the implementation of the national biometric passport and identification card project.

The Philippines also updated its PhlID card issuance progress, saying over 8 million digital ID cards have now been delivered, out of a 2022 target of 33.8 million.

Sri Lanka gov confirms digital ID partnership with India

The news of a possible collaboration on Sri Lanka’s Unitary Digital Identity Framework was first unveiled in January when the countries signed a memorandum of understanding.

Now, News1st reports the Sri Lankan Secretary to the Ministry, Jayantha de Silva, said a further agreement will be signed during the visit of the Prime Minister of India, Narendra Modi, to Sri Lanka.

The new agreement will see the Government of India provide US$8 million in assistance for the implementation of the digital national identity card program in Sri Lanka.

Additionally, news from Economynext also confirmed Sri Lanka’s Cabinet has now approved the India-backed digital ID system.

According to the finance-focused publication, privacy advocates may oppose the new system, fearing it may infringe upon citizens’ privacy rights.

Vietnam greenlights biometric registrations for e-ID accounts

Vietnam’s Police Department for administrative management of social order (C06) announced 25 governmental services are now available to citizens online, SGGP reports.

These include six out of eleven level-four public services offered by the Public Security Ministry and two by Vietnam Electricity.

In the same announcement, the Vietnamese government confirmed all provinces and cities across the country now accept registration for an online ID account, an initiative part of Project No.06, designed to facilitate the digitalization of governmental infrastructure.

The project has reportedly seen the digitalization of a number of citizens’ documents, including vaccination records, social assistance information, and investigation and procedural activity.

According to Saigon, as of March 22, over 24,200 of the digital IDs have been issued by C06.

UAE announces Dubai’s fingerprint collection plan

The move was spotted by Gulf Today, who said it was announced by Lieutenant Colonel Jassim Muhammad Abdullah, director of the Fingerprints Department in the General Department of Forensics and Criminology.

According to Abdullah, the new system will see the collection of all of Dubai resident’s fingerprint biometrics to enable accurate investigation procedures.

The data will also be integrated into a new biometric center to facilitate investigation procedures in regard to criminal evidence databases.

For context, Dubai has in the past deployed other biometric technologies to aid law enforcement operations.

Turkey discusses biometric ID card and passport project

The Turkish Minister of Interior, Taoufik Charfeddine, participated in a meeting regarding the country’s newly released biometric identification card and passport system, IFM reports.

The meeting saw the participation of the National Authority for the Protection of Personal Data, Shaouki Gueddas, and the directors of public administrations in the Ministry involved in the implementation of the new project.

At the meeting, the experts discussed the necessary precautions in relation to the deployment of the biometric system, as well as the organizational, technical, and legal measures to be taken to begin its implementation.

Article Topics

biometric identification  |  biometrics  |  digital ID  |  Dubai  |  government services  |  identity document  |  identity management  |  India  |  national ID  |  Philippines  |  Sri Lanka  |  Vietnam