The three African countries have completed the first phase of a digital identity interoperability project designed to make cross-border identity verification easier while allowing each country to retain control of its citizens’ data.
Benin, Ghana and Rwanda have established initial connections between their national identification systems through the Smart Africa Data Exchange (SADX), completing the first phase of a project aimed at improving digital identity verification across African borders.
The milestone was announced by the Smart Africa Secretariat on October 20, 2026, in Kigali, Rwanda. The initiative forms part of Smart Africa’s broader plan to build a Single Digital Market in which people, businesses and public institutions can access trusted digital services across national boundaries.
The pilot is designed to allow participating countries to verify identity information held by one another’s national systems without transferring their entire identification databases into a single central repository.
How the Digital Identity System Works
The initiative operates through two complementary mechanisms: the Smart Africa Trust Alliance (SATA) and the Smart Africa Data Exchange (SADX).
SATA provides the framework for trust, governance and cooperation between participating countries, while SADX supplies the technical infrastructure through which authorised national systems can securely exchange and verify information.
The system follows a federated model, meaning each country retains control of its own national identification database. Rather than creating a central database containing citizens’ identity records from across Africa, the platform enables participating systems to communicate through a shared framework.
According to Smart Africa, Benin, Ghana and Rwanda have completed initial technical connectivity and demonstrated end-to-end digital identity verification using synthetic data in a controlled testing environment.
The test used simulated information rather than real citizens’ personal records. Consequently, the completion of the first phase does not mean the system is already available for routine identity checks at airports or land borders.
What It Could Mean for Travellers
The pilot’s first intended application is cross-border travel. Under the proposed arrangement, a traveller from one participating country could eventually have their identity verified against official records held by their home country when entering another participating country.
Smart Africa has identified automated airport gates as one possible application of the technology. If implemented, the system could help border authorities verify travellers’ identities more efficiently while maintaining the existing national identification systems.
However, the project does not automatically eliminate passport, visa or other immigration requirements. Any changes to border procedures would depend on decisions by the relevant national authorities.
The initiative could also be extended to land-border crossings as the participating countries progress towards operational testing.
Potential Applications Beyond Travel
Although travel is the initial focus, the technology could support other services requiring identity verification across national boundaries.
A business seeking to operate in another participating country could potentially use the system to verify its legal registration. Educational institutions and employers could use similar arrangements to verify academic qualifications and professional credentials issued elsewhere.
Other possible applications include the verification of vaccination records and support for cross-border financial services and digital trade.
These applications remain potential future uses rather than services confirmed to be operational under the current pilot.
If successfully expanded, the system could help reduce administrative barriers for businesses, professionals and individuals moving between participating countries. It could also support regional trade and economic integration under the African Continental Free Trade Area (AfCFTA).
Nineteen African Countries Have Signed the SATA Declaration
The initiative builds on the Smart Africa Trust Alliance Declaration, which has been signed by 19 African countries representing more than 335 million people.
The signatories are Benin, the Central African Republic, Chad, Comoros, the Republic of Congo, Côte d’Ivoire, Gabon, The Gambia, Ghana, Guinea, Madagascar, Rwanda, Senegal, South Sudan, Togo, Tunisia, Uganda, Zambia and Zimbabwe.
Their participation in the declaration establishes a common framework for cooperation on digital trust, interoperability and cross-border services. However, signing the declaration does not mean that all 19 countries are already connected to the SADX platform. The current pilot involves Benin, Ghana and Rwanda.
The work also contributes to the implementation of the African Union’s interoperability framework for digital identification by translating continental digital policy objectives into practical, country-led technical arrangements.
Government Agencies and Partners Behind the Initiative
The pilot is being implemented with support from national identification and technology agencies in the three participating countries.
In Benin, the participating agencies are the Agence des Systèmes d’Information et du Numérique (ASIN) and the Agence Nationale d’Identification des Personnes (ANIP).
Ghana is represented by the National Identification Authority (NIA) and the National Information Technology Agency (NITA), while Rwanda’s participating agencies are the Rwanda Information Society Authority (RISA) and the National Identification Agency (NIDA).
The initiative also receives support from the African Development Bank, the European Union, the Norwegian Agency for Development Cooperation (Norad), Co-Develop and Ascend Digital Solutions Limited.
Ascend Digital Solutions is providing the technical foundation for the SADX platform alongside Smart Africa and the participating governments.
Lacina Koné, Director General and Chief Executive Officer of Smart Africa, said the project demonstrates that African countries can connect their digital economies without giving up national control over their data.
Harkirit Singh, Chief Executive Officer of Ascend Digital Solutions, also highlighted the importance of establishing trusted digital connections between national systems as a foundation for future cross-border services.
With the first phase completed, the project is moving into Phase Two, which will focus on preparing a controlled operational pilot for cross-border identity verification.
The next stage is subject to national approvals, security assessments and operational readiness requirements. Smart Africa has not announced a confirmed date for public or routine operational use.
Results from the pilot will help inform the initiative’s future development. Other signatories to the SATA Declaration will also be invited to consider participation in subsequent implementation phases as the findings are consolidated.
The project represents an early step towards connecting Africa’s separate digital identity systems through a shared technical framework. Its practical impact will depend on the results of operational testing, the readiness of participating governments and the safeguards established for secure information exchange.
TNAM
