Guyana inks US$35.4M deal for Single Electronic Identification System

…new e-ID cards will improve doing business, transactions – President Ali

The Guyana Government on Friday signed a US$35.4 million contract with German-based company, Veridos Identity Solutions, to implement the Single Electronic Identification System here that will see new e-cards being issued to Guyanese for the conduct of a wide array of transactions as well as to monitor the issuance of work permits in the country.

Back in October 2021, Guyana had reached out the United Arab Emirates (UAE) Government for assistance in introducing the electronic identification card. With the intervention of His Highness, Sheikh Juma bin Dalmook Al Maktoum, two international companies were shortlisted.
Veridos, a global leading provider of integrated identity solutions, was subsequently selected after making a presentation to the Guyana Government. It was explained that the evaluators found that the partially-owned German Government company presented the best solution for Guyana.
Consequently, the US$35.4 million contract with Veridos was signed virtually on Friday and according President Dr Irfaan Ali, getting to this stage was a long process but will promote the ease of doing business and personal transaction in Guyana.
“E-ID systems promote the idea of ‘One Citizen, One Identity’ by assigning a unique national registration number to each citizen for use by all Government agencies [and the] private sector. For example, in the banking sector now, we know the difficulties there [but] through this card, the banking sector now can have fingerprint verification and validation of the person who’s before them. So, the need for proof of address and all the other documentation is eliminated. So, the cost of doing business, the effectiveness, the competitiveness, the efficiency will all improved as a result of this technology,” he stated.
According to the Head of State, the card’s capabilities are also in keeping with his Government’s commitment to promote e-Governance in order to improve the productivity of businesses and the delivery of Government services through the introduction of e-Health, e-Education, e-Security, e-Agriculture, electronic permit, and license processing among other areas.
He further noted that the enhancement is necessary because there is an immediate need to implement a robust national identity management system that focuses on the integration of identification services across Government agencies, security, ease of use, and acquisition of IDs.
“This ID system would improve access to all citizen-centric Government services and benefit the citizens, private sector and Government alike. This will bring us in line with solutions used by the most developed economies, and position Guyana to be a competitive sphere in a world that is advancing drastically along a technological landscape,” the Guyanese leader stated.

Monitoring of immigrants
Moreover, with the new requirements in Guyana for work permits, managing work permits and managing the immigration process, President Ali pointed out that this new resident ID card will allow local authorities to conduct their monitoring of immigrants electronically.
“The resident card will be added on the Electronic ID System and will be used to better document the immigrants working in Guyana. So, this is very important. The work permitting resident card is part of the delivery of this project and it allows us to ensure that that we manage the immigrants coming in and manage the work permit system,” he stated.
The Head of State went on to outline other internationally-recognised features of the new resident card, which is not only ISO-certified but will also be accepted by the International Civil Aviation Organisation (ICAO) for international travel.
“As a result of that compliance, it brings with it technical and international standards and requirements that are met into operability, secure and interoperable identity credential, privacy and cross border protection. As you know, these are important issues the global community is faced with and we are advancing our work in our technological transformation, to position Guyana to be among those countries that are ready for the new digital age,” the President contended.
He also indicated that as a result of being ISO compliant, one of the key features of this new e-ID card is the level of privacy that will make it is second to none, globally.
To this end, while noting that the Electronic ID System and accompanying software will be tailored for Guyana’s use and will include implementation services, training of administrators and operators, local help desk support and 60 months of support and maintenance, Ali outlined that the system will adhere to the highest level of international standards.
“The system allows the capture of individuals’ biographical and biometric information based on international standards and stores it to provide identity-based services to individuals and other Government offices. The ID and resident cards are laser engraved, black and white technology with secure, pre-printed designs and devices for a state-of-the-art polycarbonate document, which includes a chip that can integrate a variety of services to the individual,” the Head of State detailed.
The project is expected to have a 12-month implementation period.

Quality product
Meanwhile, Managing Director of Veridos Mexico, Rolando Colchado promised to deliver a quality product to the country and its people.
“We are very committed for this project and it would be an honour to work with you and develop this… project together with you. So, thank you very much for this opportunity and [we’re] looking forward to start as soon as possible with this implementation,” the Veridos officially stated.
Friday’s contract signing was witnessed virtually by Sheikh Ahmed Dalmook Al Maktoum. Prime Minister Mark Phillips, Senior Finance Minister Dr Ashni Singh and Minister within the Ministry of Public Works Deodat Indar were also present during the signing ceremony at State House. (G8)