“In Southeast Asia, interview subjects showed an interest in biometric technology for identity verification and preventing fraud, and also pointed out that poor ID management could have serious consequences for individuals’ safety in states where corruption is pronounced.”

Yoti is capping off its research project on digital identity in Africa and Southeast Asia with an overview of its findings, offering some interesting insights into the particular needs and conditions of largely untapped markets.

As the company’s report explains, the research was prompted by feedback Yoti received from attendees of the ICT4D2018 event in Zambia this past May, which indicated that there might be strong interest in an offline version of the Yoti Key, a compact NFC device designed to hold identity data. Yoti commissioned the help of two expert researchers who would each carry out in-person interviews with NGOs and grassroots organizations in a number of countries across Africa and Southeast Asia.

Yoti has already revealed some key findings from the research on its blog. Many interview subjects in Africa pointed to the need for technology that could be used to identify infants in order to improve healthcare, and the need for digitization tools that could be used to make paperwork in that area more efficient. In Southeast Asia, interview subjects showed an interest in biometric technology for identity verification and preventing fraud, and also pointed out that poor ID management could have serious consequences for individuals’ safety in states where corruption is pronounced.

Now, a number of additional key findings have been published in Yoti’s overview. Entitled “Grassroots NGO digital identity research: Lessons from Africa and South East Asia”, the report is available from Yoti’s website. It should prove interesting to any identity solutions specialists curious to know more about the unique opportunities in these markets, and Yoti is inviting individuals to get in touch with the company directly if they want further information still, or to get involved in piloting Yoti’s offline identity solution.