Digital identity will foster economic growth- Interswitch Boss

Nigeria can unlock its full economic potentials if majority (if not all) of its citizens have digital identity as proposed by the National Identity programme, according to the Founder and Group Managing Director, Interswitch Group, Mitchell Elegbe.

This assertion was made by the Founder and Group Managing Director, Interswitch Group, Mitchell Elegbe, during a recent webinar themed: ‘Enabling Nigeria’s economic and social growth with digital identity’.

Elegbe, posited that the digital identity database will help Nigerian businesses fasten their growth trajectory where everyone involved across the transacting spectrum can be easily identified.

He harped on the need for financial service providers to ensure due diligence in carrying out Know Your Customer (KYC) protocols, adding that this will help businesses and their customers complete business transactions faster.

Elegbe also hinted that having a single database would aid easy identification of citizens which is vital for development.

According to him, “At Interswitch, identity is critical because of the nature of our business and the regulations we adhere to. We believe that provided there is the need to exchange value, irrespective of the form, there is need for some form of identity. However, a real challenge is verifying the individuals outside the formal sector. Developers, businesses and economies would better achieve their economic potentials if the individuals involved are digitally captured and are easily verifiable. This will in turn reduce fraud and drive growth.”

Elegbe advised that in order to drive up data acquisition to enable this desired growth, that there is the need to offer incentives that will encourage people across board to get captured.

He emphasized on the need for cross referencing of data to ensure that identities are not stolen.

He revealed that current data available are disparate and in silos, so cross referencing and electronic capturing will reduce these inconsistencies.

The Co-Founder and CEO, VerifyMe Nigeria, Esigie Aguele, also speaking at the webinar,  corroborated Elegbe’s position, adding that it was imperative for stakeholders in the identity space to provide a central and comprehensive digital identity database which he observed will enhance security, revenue collection, taxes and jobs creation.

The webinar was organized by TechCabal in partnership with VerifyMe to mark the International ID-Day while examining how digital identity unlocks the immense potential in Nigeria’s e-governance and digital economy specifically, as it relates to growth in non-oil revenue streams such as fintech and e-commerce.