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ITU-T Focus Group Digital Financial Services
Ecosystem

to obtain a Tazkera ID in Afghanistan a married woman must submit her husband’s Tazkera or that of one of
his male relatives in order to complete her own application (UN High Commissioner for Refugees, 2005). An
Iraqi woman can only be granted a Civil Status ID if a male relative vouches for her (OWFI, 2015). In Egypt, the
biggest obstacle facing women in obtaining a national ID is the lack of a birth certificate, which is a requirement
in national ID registration (National Council for Women, n.d.).
Besides the poor and women, we find evidence of other populations experiencing challenges with enrollment
or use of the national identity programs in 13 countries . In some cases, exclusion is a direct result of legal or
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institutional frameworks, as seen in the cases involving indigenous or minority exclusion (five programs), and
religious exclusion (four). Select religious groups and ethnic minority populations are the most commonly
excluded groups. Bennett & Lyon (2008) warn that identity cards, especially those that are related to the
function of surveillance, may contribute to “social sorting” because “once cards are mandatory, then they may
be used to single out or even to harass visible minorities and those with alternative lifestyles.” In Egypt, requiring
an individual to list his or her religion as either Muslim, Jewish, or Christian on the national identity card created
a barrier for Baha’is, though a 2008 court ruling allowed Egyptian citizens, including Baha’is, to decline to
state a religion and to use a dash on the identity card instead (Farivar, 2012). Other similar cases of religious
exclusion include Indonesia, Iraq, and Sudan. We also find concerns with minority populations vulnerable
to exclusion with mandatory ID programs in five countries (Colombia, Guatemala, Kenya, Peru, and Sudan).
Colombia and Guatemala had enrollment incidents relating to the discrimination of indigenous populations,
while Kenya, Peru, and Sudan have complex registration or enrollment procedures that often require a large
number of additional documents for proof of identities that are difficult for certain minority populations to
produce. For example, people from certain communities in Kenya need to fulfill sixteen requirements before
they can obtain identity cards, while Kenyans from other areas are not subjected to this rigorous and lengthy
process (Ogiek Peopes’ Development Programme et al., 2011).

Indirect exclusion can also result from other enrollment or use challenges that impact some populations more
than others. Other populations reportedly experiencing challenges in national identity program enrollment
include refugees, those that are internally displaced, and stateless and undocumented individuals (three
programs), often because they lack pre-requisite materials for enrollment. Additional details on barriers to
enrollment for different populations for each national ID program is reported in the review spreadsheet.

4.6 Cost

Figure 6 – Program Funding Source

We identify a range of funding sources and structures connected to the implementation of identity programs.
Of the 23 programs we review that have evidence on funding sources, 19 programs receive at least part of

6 These countries include Colombia, Cote d'Ivoire, Ecuador, Egypt, Guatemala, Indonesia, Iraq, Kenya, Peru, Sudan, Uganda,
Uzbekistan, and Vietnam.

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