TECH5’s biometric and digital ID technologies are used by the Mauritanian Ministry of Digital Transition, Innovation and Public Sector Modernisation (MTNIMA) for its digital ID pilot project, with the aim of replacing passwords with biometrics for access to eGovernment services.
TECH5 won this digital ID pilot project in partnership with local integrator SmartMS through a tender published by MTNIMA and UNDP (United Nations Development Program) in June 2022. The companies provided a jointly developed software solution for digital onboarding and verification of citizens. This consists of identity verification (identity proofing) with auto-ident process[1]based on the NIST (National Institute for Standards in Technology) identity proofing and biometric verification, based on OpenID Connect flows, allowing for passwordless login into the Mauritanian eGovernment portal.
The solution includes the back-end system and the Identity Provider (IdP) developed by SmartMS, as well as TECH5’s technology platforms T5-OmniMatch Face BioSDK for facial biometric 1:1 matching, T5-AirSnap Face technology for facial biometrics capture using the camera of a mobile phone, T5-LDS facial liveness detection software, and T5-IDencode platform for the issuance of a digital ID stored in an encrypted 2D machine readable identity container – T5-Cryptograph – containing biometric and biographical data of the citizen that is used to perform decentralized biometric authentication as part of consent framework before sharing of personal information.
TECH5 has also provided MTNIMA with the mobile applications for the iOS and Android operating systems, allowing for biometric data capture and verification using a mobile phone. The apps have built-in Optical Character Recognition (OCR)[2] and Near-field Communication (NFC)[3] technologies for document data reading and verification during digital onboarding.
Additionally, TECH5 shared its knowledge and contributed the source code of the customised solution developed for this pilot project, to MOSIP (Modular Open Source Identity Platform). “Our company is confidently investing in digital ID projects across the globe. We firmly believe that by promoting collaboration between governments, open-source solution providers, and creators of value-add technology, we can shape a more inclusive future for everyone”- says Co-founder, Chairman, and CTO of TECH5 Rahul Parthe. “The successful implementation of the solution is a testament to the exceptional combination of biometric and Digital ID technologies. Thanks to the cutting-edge advancements in this field, the citizens of Mauritania can now enjoy easy, fast, and secure access to eGov services.”
The pilot was successfully presented to MTMINA ministry’s employees on March 22nd, 2023, with more than 70 people testing the application on the first day of trials. During the digital onboarding, citizens are enrolled with their Mauritanian Passport or an ID card featuring contactless capability (issued after June 2022), using the mobile application. The document holder’s photo is biometrically verified by the app against the holder’s face and sent to the back-end system for digital ID creation. Once a digital ID in the form of a T5-Cryptograph is created, it is sent back to the holder and stored in their phone. For biometric verification, enabling access to the Mauritanian eGovernment portal, the user will be verified by face against their digital ID by taking a selfie when requested by the portal during login.
Leveraging the potential of digital technology and innovation for development is a key priority in Mauritania’s national development strategy[4].
“Through this pilot, we have successfully demonstrated secure and trusted identity proofing of test users as well as user authentication for e-government application.” – Commented Yehdhih Anna, Project Manager at SmartMS.
“We are proud to be part of this project contributing to the technological transformation of the country. Mauritania looks to be on track to become one of the first countries to adopt fully digital national ID biometrically linked to its holder.” – Says Ameya Bhagwat, Chief Revenue Officer at TECH5.
The pilot project continued until October 1st, 2023, and the Mauritanian government have now released an app for its citizens called Houwiyeti (هويتي ), concretising the first steps of the digital Identity program of the Mauritanian government. This app is used to have access to various services based on biometric identification.
[1] Auto-ident is an identity verification method, where customers or users prove their identity with an app.
[2] Optical Character Recognition converts printed text into digital image files. It is a digital copier that uses automation to convert scanned documents into editable, shareable PDFs that are machine-readable.
[3] Near-field communication (NFC) is a set of communication protocols that enables communication between two electronic devices over a distance of 4 cm or less.
[4] According to the UNDP Mauritanie: https://www.undp.org/fr/mauritania/news/undp-helps-accelerate-inclusive-digital-transformation-mauritania