Abuja, Nigeria. – [June 17, 2020] – Paradigm Initiative, a pan-African social enterprise that advocates for digital rights and inclusion in Africa has released a policy brief titled ” The Digital Identity Process in Nigeria”
In a rapidly developing digital economy where identity is increasingly becoming important, this policy brief evaluates the digital identity process in Nigeria including problems, opportunities and recommendations. Importantly, the Brief feeds public discourse and citizen complaints into its analysis especially as the identity owners are the most affected group in the ID process. Recommendations touching on legal, technical and capacity development areas are made in the brief and we hope that the relevant stakeholders find them instructive in implementing one of the biggest duties in the modern economy; managing digital identity.
“The policy brief is an assessment of the implementation of digital identity in Nigeria. We have been calling the attention of the identity management commission and other stakeholders to certain red flags and we have emphasized the importance of safeguards as an important prerequisite before implementing digital identity in Nigeria,”said Adeboye Adegoke, Paradigm Initiative’s Digital Rights Program Manager .
“The lack of data protection law has been at the forefront of our demands. In addition to this, we have requested for a sustained civil society engagement to ensure that digital identity isn’t imposed on the people.” Adeboye added..
<<<Download the Policy Brief here>>>
About Paradigm Initiative
Paradigm Initiative (PIN) is a social enterprise that builds ICT-enabled support systems and advocates for digital rights in order to improve the livelihoods of under-served young Africans. The organization’s digital inclusion programs include a digital readiness school for young people living in under-served communities (LIFE) and a software engineering school targeting high potential young Nigerians (Dufuna). Both programs have a deliberate focus to ensure equal participation for women and girls. The digital rights advocacy program is focused on the development of public policy for internet freedom in Africa, with offices in Abuja, Nigeria (covering the Anglophone West Africa region); Yaoundé, Cameroon (Central Africa); Nairobi, Kenya (East Africa) and Lusaka, Zambia (Southern Africa). Paradigm Initiative has worked in communities across Nigeria since 2007, and across Africa from 2017, building experience, community trust and an organizational culture that positions us as a leading social enterprise in ICT for Development and Digital Rights on the continent. Paradigm Initiative is also the convener of the Digital Rights and Inclusion Forum (DRIF), a pan-African bilingual Forum that has held annually since 2013.
For any inquiries about this press release, please send an email media@paradigmhq.org