Imagine having your national identity card in your phone and you only have to click a few characters on the touchscreen to show who you are and enjoy essential services with ease.
That future could be just two years away–and the national ID will be sent direct to your Smartphone, cutting the long wait and cost of replacing the mandatory card for Malawians aged 16.
Malawi plans to roll out a digital identity wallet for Malawians by 2026.
National Registration Bureau (NRB) Principal Secretary Mphatso Sambo announced this on Tuesday at the ID4Africa Annual General Meeting (AGM) in Addis Ababa, Ethiopia.
“We have successfully piloted the Digital ID Wallet and the next step is nationwide implementation,” he said. “This innovation will revolutionise how Malawians access critical services, from banking to healthcare, while strengthening identity verification processes.”
This is part of the national strategy to digitise government services for enhanced efficiency and accessibility of essential services.
Making the national ID accessible and verifiable on Smartphones will accelerate financial inclusion while reducing the long-term cost of producing the physical national ID card.
ID4Africa is the Pan-African movement to build strategic capacity and partnerships for African countries to develop robust and responsible identity systems for development and humanitarian services.
In an interview from the annual meeting, which started on Friday, NRB acting chief registration officer Mbawaka Mwakhwawa said that as smartphone use in Malawi is projected to rise to 30 percent by 2025, the Digital ID Wallet presents a timely opportunity to leverage on the growing connectivity.
“The launch of Digital ID Wallet will lessen the logistical and financial burden of issuing physical cards while expanding accessibility for citizens,” emphasized Mwakhwawa.
NRB has issued national identity cards to over 12.5 million registered Malawians aged at least 16, it reports.
The Digital ID will supplement the plastic card that registered Malawians require to access financial services and register to vote.
During the AGM, ID4Africa chairperson Dr Joseph Atick underscored the importance of digital identity for the continent’s development, urging nations like Malawi to speedily adopt Digital ID for improved service delivery and the fight against fraud
