Sustainable & Interoperable Digital Identity

Coach Name

Dr. Juan Juan

EU Organization

Secure Identity Alliance (SIA)

Members

  • Debora Comarin, SIA
  • Stephanie de Labriolle, SIA

US Organization

OpenID Foundation (OIDF)

Members

  • Gail Hodges, OIDF
  • Elizabeth Garber, OIDF
  • Mark Haine, OIDF

Project Overview

The SIDI Hub project aims to foster global collaboration to create cross-border interoperability for digital identities. By bringing together nonprofit standard organizations, governments, multilateral institutions, civil society, and the private sector, the project seeks to build the governance and frameworks necessary for managing and issuing digital identity credentials across borders. In 2024, SIDI Hub organized global summits in Africa, Europe, North America, and Asia, engaging governments, industry experts, and stakeholders to collaboratively identify and address the challenges of digital identity interoperability.

Through these workshops, SIDI Hub has developed three key use cases: opening a bank account, validating education credentials, and supporting refugees. The project aims to create a system that respects local regulations while enabling secure, cross-border data flow, improving global digital identity frameworks, and ensuring trust in digital interactions.

Methods and approaches

Cross-Border Interoperability

Engaging global stakeholders to define precise requirements and create frameworks for cross-border digital identity interoperability.

Champion Use Cases

The project focuses on three real-world use cases—opening a bank account, validating education credentials, and supporting refugees—to anchor efforts toward establishing interoperability.

Global Stakeholder Engagement

Over 15 governments and multilateral organizations actively participated in the workshops, contributing to the development of solutions for global digital identity challenges.

Credential Governance

The project advocates for the development of a “credential trust framework,” extending existing trust frameworks to address global governance needs for credential issuance and management.

Key Achievements

Global Workshops

Held workshops in four key regions—South Africa, Germany, the USA, and Japan—engaging governments and stakeholders in discussions on the future of digital identity.

Three Champion Use Cases

Defined and analyzed key use cases that drive cross-border interoperability for digital identities, contributing to the development of digital credential frameworks.

Credential Governance Framework

Published a comprehensive report on credential governance, providing the foundations for creating interoperable systems for managing digital identities.

Collaborative Ecosystem

Built a strong, open ecosystem involving governments, NGOs, multilateral organizations, and the private sector to tackle global digital identity challenges.

Global South Representation

Ensured the inclusion of voices from the Global South, a traditionally underrepresented region in digital identity discussions, through targeted workshops and outreach.

Impact & Results

Enhanced Global Digital Identity Frameworks

SIDI Hub has made significant strides in improving cross-border interoperability for digital identities, facilitating secure, trusted data flow between countries.

Inclusive Approach

The project’s emphasis on including the Global South has ensured that emerging markets have a say in the development of digital identity solutions, contributing to more equitable and inclusive frameworks.

Government and Multilateral Engagement

Active involvement of over 15 governments and key multilateral organizations, including the UNHCR and World Bank, has helped shape the project’s deliverables, ensuring broad international collaboration.

Knowledge Transfer

The project has successfully consolidated knowledge from previous initiatives and expanded on them, creating a collaborative platform for digital identity experts worldwide.

Future Growth

SIDI Hub has established the foundation for a sustainable, ongoing effort that will continue to build on the work done during the grant period, with discussions underway to form a formal legal entity to carry the project forward.

Publications and Open-Source Contributions

All publications are licensed under CC BY 4.0 (Attribution 4.0 International License).

Future directions

Legal Infrastructure for SIDI Hub

The project is focused on establishing a formal legal infrastructure, ensuring its sustainability and ability to continue facilitating collaboration across stakeholders in the digital identity ecosystem.

Scaling the Platform

Ongoing efforts are focused on scaling the project’s outputs to a global audience, with potential collaborations with UN agencies and the EU.

Data Privacy and Trust Solutions

Short-term goals include developing trust solutions for cross-border personal data flow, ensuring compliance with different country regulations while preserving privacy.

Formalizing Collaboration

Discussions are ongoing to form a formal, legally recognized entity to ensure the long-term sustainability and impact of SIDI Hub.