The DPI Approach: A Playbook

Introduction

This playbook maps the journey from conventional public service delivery to the DPI approach. It demonstrates how building appropriate technology architectures, governance schemes, and digital ecosystems enable safe, inclusive, and secure public and private services. The playbook offers examples, practical reference tools, and scrutinizes both challenges and best practices for countries formulating rights-based DPI. It is valuable for individuals, sectors, or governments seeking to improve services and safeguards for people via DPI to foster shared understanding and common goals among stakeholders.

Key Insights

What is the DPI approach?

The DPI approach is described as a set of shared digital systems which are secure and interoperable, built on open standards and specifications. It aims to deliver and provide equitable access to public and/or private services at societal scale, governed by enabling rules to drive development, inclusion, innovation, trust, competition, and respect human rights and fundamental freedoms.

Key pillars of the DPI approach:

• Open, interoperable technology: Built on principles of openness, interoperability, and scalability.
• Robust governance: Complements regulatory and policy frameworks by embedding governance principles directly into the architecture of the infrastructure.
• Resilient local ecosystems: Promotes market innovation and efficient service delivery by championing the private sector, civil society, academia, and their communities of practitioners.

Why countries should adopt DPI:

• Inclusion: To deliver services to last-mile efficiency by overcoming existing delays, leakages, and targeting errors.
• Resilience: To enable uninterrupted, remote assistance through digital networks operating at a national scale during public emergencies.
• Sovereignty: To offer countries the autonomy and flexibility to plan, design, and implement their digital systems.
• Innovation: To allow multiple stakeholders to collaborate and contribute to innovation in the digital ecosystem.

Key Drivers of DPI development and adoption:

DPI ecosystems are composed of multi-stakeholder arrangements that contribute to both the technical and non-technical aspects. Key stakeholders include:

• Public sector
• Private sector
• Open-source community
• Development actors
• Philanthropies
• Civil society organizations and end-users

Layers of DPI Architecture:

Core components enable different DPI systems to communicate:

• Digital identity
• Digital payments
• Consent-based data sharing These components are underpinned by strategic leadership, accountability, legislative frameworks, and stakeholder collaboration.

Key Statistics & Data

• 1.27 billion: Residents enrolled on Aadhaar, India’s digital identity infrastructure.
• 13: Unique public service provisions may be availed through Nigeria’s core digital identity verification service.
• 443 million: Vaccination certificates issued through Pedulilindungi, Indonesia’s health interface.
• 40 million: Individuals made their first-ever financial transfer through Pix, Brazil’s payment ecosystem.
• 6 million: Users registered on PayNow, Singapore’s interoperable fast payments network.
• 25: Countries adopted Global Forest Watch to access real-time deforestation data.
• 3.5 million: Ethiopian farmers benefited through data exchanges to improve agricultural practices.
• 290 thousand: E-contents in 30 languages available for teachers on Diksha, India’s digital learning ecosystem.

Methodology

This document is a playbook that synthesizes perspectives from multiple points along the DPI implementation journey. It compiles ‘plays’, techniques, self-assessment tools, and example blueprints. It also offers case studies scrutinizing best practices, and a series of practical steps to help accelerate achievement of the SDGs. The document aims to present a practical understanding of DPI, adapting to unique country contexts based on reviewing different conceptions from World Bank, CDPI, DIAL, DPGA, OECD, Co-Develop, GovStack, and other organizations.

Implications and Conclusions

This playbook underscores that DPI implementation requires a holistic approach, encompassing technological, governance, and sustainability considerations. It emphasizes that by adopting DPI, countries can modernize service delivery, promote inclusion, foster innovation, and enhance resilience. The playbook provides practical guidance for countries to leverage digital infrastructures effectively to address complex challenges across different societies and accelerate progress towards achieving the Sustainable Development Goals.