Digital Bangladesh, launched in 2009, is Bangladesh’s digital transformation program, which started the implementation of policies for the development of digital infrastructure and related public services. [7]Digital Bangladesh laid the foundation for the NID digital identification system [8]as well as the Bangladesh National Digital Architecture (BNDA), which allows the government to provide e-services to other government agencies, citizens, businesses and employees. [9]Schemes such as banking, telecommunications, social welfare, pensions, birth and death registration and food and development aid are all administered through the ‘National e-Service Bus’ introduced under the BNDA. [10]
The NID is a biometric, smart identity card with an embedded microchip which is only available to Bangladeshi citizens. [11]Originating from a voter database implemented by the Election Commission in 2008, upon voting, citizens were required to provide biometric data and eventually were issued NID cards with a microchip and unique 10-digit identification number. [12]The World Bank’s Identification for Enhanced Access to Services (IDEAS) Project from 2011 to 2018 provided technical assistance to the Election Commission and other agencies for laying a regulatory and policy framework as well as developing technology for the NID system. [13]Due to implementation delays of legal and policy frameworks, the project only achieved half of the target number of 90 million NID cards issued to citizens by 2018. [14]
In 2023, the smart NID cards began being implemented as a foundational identity system. [15]The new NID system assigns a unique National Identification Number (NIN) to newborns, which will override the multitude of different ID numbers that caused confusion previously. [16]The same unique NIN assigned at birth will be used later on for the individual’s NID card number, consolidating to one unique identifier for an individual’s entire life. [17]
The NID is also used as a functional identity system. [18]While having an NID card will not be enforced as mandatory until all citizens have registered, [19]it is required to access “employment, land registration, passports, opening bank accounts, buying mobile SIM cards, electricity, water and gas connections and for other facilities”. [20]Other services linked to the NID system include social and government benefits, voting, taxpaying, and marriage registration. [21]The NID is also required in order to purchase rail tickets in Bangladesh. [22]
Documents required to apply for an NID include a birth certificate, a copy of a utility bill for address proof, a citizenship certificate, and photocopies of the NID cards of parents. [23]If relevant, the NID copy of one’s spouse, passport, and drivers’ license may also be required. [24]While not required, a Secondary School Certificate (SSC) or equivalent school exam pass certificate and Tax Identification Number (TIN) may also be used to certify a person’s identity. [25]It is important to note that while a birth certificate is a prerequisite for NID registration, [26]Bangladesh had a birth registration rate of only 83% in 2023. [27]
There have been reports of errors in the registration of NIDs, with many people receiving cards with inaccurate information on their card which has led to them being denied access to services. [28]In one case, an individual’s birth date was inaccurate on his card and, as a result, the family was unable to apply for an old age allowance which they depended on. [29]Brokers in Cox’s Bazar have also been reported forging NID cards, birth certificates and Bangladeshi passports for Rohingya refugees, some of which have been detained by police as a result. [30]In response, the government sought to gain access to UNHCR’s database of Rohingya refugees in the country to prevent them from obtaining Bangladeshi identity documents, to which UNHCR provided initial consent for. [31]
UNHCR has been issuing ID cards to Rohingya refugees since 2018 as a joint registration exercise in collaboration with the government. [32]The registration exercise’s main objective was to create a unified database with a consistent unique global individual and family identifier for all Rohingya refugees and to have a consolidated registration data from them including previously unregistered refugees from 1992. [33]A total 979,306 individuals from 203,271 families have been reported to have been registered till 30th April, 2024. [34]In the Rohingya camps, blockchain technology is being increasingly used for digital identification, as observed during COVID-19, when the World Food Programme (WFP) introduced the technology and served over 500,000 Rohingya refugees. [35]Through blockchain, WFP optimized resource allocation among multiple humanitarian organizations enabling quicker and more effective assistance delivery. [36]While different endeavours for digital identification in different domains have been taking place, the concerning factor is, due to lack of any coherent framework or regulation, sustainable implementation still remains a distant reality. [37]Additionally, Bangladesh’s recent move to hand over refugees’ digital identity information to the Myanmar authorities without first securing their consent has cast serious doubt on the database’s ability to safeguard confidentiality and maintain trust. [38]
