Identification Revolution: Can Digital ID be Harnessed for Development? - Softcover

Alan Gelb is a senior fellow and director of studies at the Center for Global Development, where he specializes in the development applications of biometric ID technology, aid and development outcomes, and the special development challenges of resource-rich countries. He was previously director of development policy at the World Bank and chief economist for the Bank’s Africa Region.

Anna Diofasi Metz is a consultant with the World Bank's Identification for Development (ID4D) initiative and a former policy analyst at the Center for Global Development. Her recent research includes the use of biometric ID technology in elections and financing for global public goods.

Digital ID is fast becoming an essential tool for twenty-first century development. This book spells out in fascinating detail the opportunities and challenges, the perils and pitfalls of this digital ID revolution.―Ngozi Okonjo-Iweala, Board Chair, GAVI; former Finance Minister, Nigeria; former Managing Director, World Bank

Anyone interested in the current transformation of identification and registration systems underway internationally―students, researchers, policymakers or implementers―should begin with this book.―Keith Breckenridge,

Professor and Deputy Director, Wits Institute for Social and Economic Research

This excellent book affords invaluable practical guidance for states and governements hoping to reap development gains while avoiding the serious pitfalls in engaging with this most important governance revolution of the third millennium CE.―Simon Szreter, Professor of History and Public Policy, University of Cambridge

It is no exaggeration that there is an Identification Revolution and it is important and moving rapidly. [This book’s] masterful presentation brings the reader up to date, analyzing the potential benefits and pitfalls of biometric ID. This is a must read for all those interested in economic development and the potential that the ID Revolution offers.―Anne O. Krueger, Senior Research Professor, Johns Hopkins School of Advanced International Studies; Senior Fellow, Stanford Center for International Development

This is a must-have manual for anyone interested in the important topic of identification systems as drivers of social and economic develoment. . . . I expect it will remain a top reference in this field for many years to come.―Joseph Atick, Executive Chairman, ID4Africa,; Executive Chairman, Identity Counsel International

Alan Gelb and Anna Diofasi Metz have done a remarkable job of studying recent advances in the sophistication of ID systems across the globe. They offer a unique lens on what is possible, what has been done, and more importantly, why it was done. This kind of critical look at the design choices of an ID system is illuminating specially since they capture the context in which those decisions were taken.―Nandan Nilekani, Cofounder and Non-Executive Chairman, Infosys; Founding Chairman, Unique Identification Authority of India; Cofounder and Chairman, EkStep Foundation