Welcome to the February edition of Trust in Transition. This monthly newsletter curated by WISER scholars is your gateway into finance, technology, and trust in Africa. Each month the Substack will feature the voices of WiSER as we unpack the current events and stories shaping our research.
đď¸ January recap:
In January, members of the Trust Project participated in the CERTIZENS Regional Workshop in Kampala, Uganda, convening researchers from across Africa to explore identification, certification, and registration systems' implications for citizenship. The CERTIZENS Project, jointly led by the Centre of African Studies (CAS) at Copenhagen University, comprises collaborating partners including the College of Humanities and Social Science (CHUSS) at Makerere University and the Institute of African Studies at the University of Ghana.
Keith Breckenridge delivered a keynote address on African countries' trust infrastructures, emphasizing the importance of professional delegation to foster trust amidst digital databases. Janaina Costa presented a comparative study on birth registration policies in Brazil, South Africa, and Uganda, highlighting their ethical and human rights implications. Dr. Georges Eyenga examined Cameroon's civil identification reform, analyzing the challenges and implications of privatization. Fatima Moolla's paper navigated Rwanda's ethno-identity narratives, connecting historical myths to present-day digital identity practices. Additionally, Professor Jonathan Klaaren contributed in a thematic roundtable on citizenship certifications' comparative perspective. The following week Keith gave similar lectures to the Contrust programme in Frankfurt and the DigID project at Leuphana.Â
The CERTIZENS Workshop served as a platform for reflections on the complexities of identity, citizenship, and trust infrastructure development in the region, setting the stage for continued interdisciplinary research and collaboration in the field.
In this edition Wiser Trust scholars and affiliates are reading the following:
âUncovering the Stripping of Citizenship en Masseâ Keith Breckenridge | Trust
âIs Ghanaâs Journalistic Integrity in Jeopardy?â Caroline King | Doctoral Fellow | Trust
âAI Unraveling the Identity and Trust Challenge in Africaâ Georges Eyenga | Postdoc Fellow | Trust
âIs digital identity the key to financial inclusion and economic growth?â Raymond Onuoha| Postdoc Fellow | Trust
âKamoa-Kakula, Trafigura become first Lobito railway corridor customersâ Laura Phillips | Trust
âDodgy data impacts Trust in Nigeriaâ Tunde Okunoye | Doctoral Fellow | Trust
âElection Countdown: Navigating Chaosâ Fatima Moolla | Doctoral Fellow | Trust
âThe war on Gaza and Israel's Tech Diplomacy in Africaâ Youssef Mnaili | Postdoc Fellow | Trust
In this edition of Trust in Transition, our scholars and affiliates delve into pressing issues ranging from electoral integrity and journalistic freedom to the role of digital identity and data reliability in driving financial inclusion. From uncovering systemic failures within governmental institutions to exploring the potential of artificial intelligence in addressing identity-related challenges, each contribution offers unique insights into the complexities and opportunities shaping Africa's socio-economic landscape.
Contributions:
âUncovering the Stripping of Citizenship en Masseâ
Submitted by Keith Breckenridge | Trust
P.P.M and Others v Minister of Home Affairs and Others
On January 16, Justice van der Schyff, in the Pretoria High Court issued a judgement in a case against the Department of Home Affairs, that revealed over 5% of the South African adult population had been stripped of their citizenship and identification credentials over the last decade. The case shows the continuing authority of constitutional law, the legal NGOs, and of private legal insurance in addressing crises in trust infrastructures, but it also highlights serious problems in the operations of the Department of Home Affairs. Officials have been disabling the identification credentials of millions of people, without any notice and without procedural fairness of any kind. One chilling element in the case is the consistency of the department's disregard of all correspondence from citizens and lawyers seeking explanations over more than a decade. Another is the department's turn against those who straddle the national borders dating from the start of the Zuma administration in 2010. Â
âIs Ghanaâs Journalistic Integrity in Jeopardy?â
Submitted by Caroline King | Trust | Doc Fellow
Season of intimidation: Attacks on Ghana press escalate ahead of 2024 polls
Ghana is gearing up for its election in December 2024. Billboards and public infrastructures has been plastered with signs urging people to vote, with in-your-face posters displaying slogans and candidates faces. News outlets and journalists are reporting on the on-going situation, but some have faced backlash, threats and intimidation coming from various parties as they do not hold back on criticizing current and potential future government officials and their actions. Although Ghana is considered a safe and stable country, where freedom of press is guaranteed, a ranking from Reporters Without Borders (RSF) has for the second consecutive year noted a decline in the global press freedom ranking in Ghana, indicating a worrisome trend in the country. This election has the potential to be quite tumultuous, with Ghana facing a huge currency depreciation over the last two years and an economy affected by this. Protest actions in Accra highlighting the situation in September 2023 was in parts violently squashed by the police, who arrested protesters and journalists alike. The frustration and mistrust towards the government and the upcoming election is palpable, but a free expression of opinion through good journalism allows citizens to gain an understanding of current events and remains an important cornerstone of democracy. At this point it is unclear if the situation is destined to further escalate or not.
âAI Unraveling the Identity and Trust Challenge in Africaâ
Submitted by Georges Eyenga | Postdoc Fellow | Trust
In this article, Sakwa Kombo explores the issues of artificial intelligence, identity, and trust to examine how these three realities manifest in Africa. He questions the possibilities of trust among entities, individuals, and the social system in an African context marked by uncertainty about people's identities and the poor quality of infrastructure. According to him, this situation hampers trust and has serious implications for the economy. He also discusses various strategies developed globally to enhance identity verification in digital services, especially in a context where having a permanent physical address is a significant challenge. This becomes particularly problematic when banking services insist on customers providing a physical address as a means to verify their identity and enhance trust. While this article sees artificial intelligence as a technological infrastructure that could potentially address the issue of addressing, it remains silent on the unknown and unapproved uses that could result from this application. Such uses could have adverse implications on individuals' privacy, especially considering that addresses in certain neighbourhoods bear the stigmas of poverty and marginalization.
âIs Digital Identity the Key to Financial Inclusion and Economic Growth?â
Submitted by Raymond Onuoha | Postdoc Fellow | Trust
In the contemporary world, digital identity holds significant value and serves as a crucial foundation for achieving financial inclusion, rather than simply enabling it. According to Esigie Aguele, co-founder and CEO of VerifyMe, a digital Know Your Customer (KYC) provider in the Nigerian ecosystem, âGiven the knowledge we know across the board that digital services will power open finance, economic growth and looking at how services are evolving with about 70-80% of financial transactions happening in the digital domain, this means that digital identity is not only something that can enhance financial inclusion but financial inclusion cannot exist without an Anti-Money Laundering (AML) compliant digital identity. Digital identity products are key enablers for the financial economy.
âKamoa-Kakula, Trafigura Become First Lobito Railway Corridor Customersâ
Submitted by Laura Phillips | Trust
In this brief Mining Weekly article we learn about the signing of a new agreement to transport copper and related mineral products from the central African copperbelt to the Atlantic, through the port of Lobito in Angola. Whereas mining companies operating in Zambia and the Democratic Republic of Congo have previously transported their goods for export off the continent via the port of Durban in South Africa, the Lobito Corridor offers them a quick and supposedly cheaper mechanism for export. The development of the Corridor and related railway will shift local and regional economies in significant ways, but for our purposes the Corridor also signals a potential shift in strategies and patterns of âextraversionâ - commonly thought of in African History as the exploitation of externally derived resources as a mode of internal governance. It has long been argued that a lack of trust in African societies and economies has contributed to the significance of extraversion on the continent. In 2024 what role does trust - or its absence - play in the exporting of copper and the political economy of the Lobito railway corridor?
âDodgy Data Impacts Trust in Nigeriaâ
Submitted by Tunde Okunoye | Doc Fellow |Trust Project
IMF statistics on Nigeria look unreal. This book review highlights a bane of development in Africa: poor statistics. Take for instance economic data from 2019. In 2019, Nigeriaâs debt to GDP ratio was 29.17%. In contrast, her revenue to GDP ratio was a poor 7.83%, when the average across Africa that year was 23%. For context, Nigeria together with South Africa and Egypt hold the bulk of Africaâs sovereign debt. Nevertheless, Nigeriaâs huge debt level was only a healthy 29.17% of GDP. Why? Because Nigeria is Africaâs largest economy. How then could that huge economy only produce a poor 7.83% revenue to GDP ratio? Researchers on Nigeria will immediately spot something amiss with that data. No, unlike many African countries Nigeria does not have a revenue problem. However, Nigeria (like many other African countries) does have a corruption problem. Researchers on Nigeria have identified prebendalism as the key explanatory logic for the functioning of institutions in Nigeria. It is not likely that Nigeriaâs revenue is a mere 7% of its GDP. What is more likely is that the regularly reported leakages of revenues into private coffers shapes what is recorded as official statistics. Nigeria is projected to lose US $23 billion in oil revenues alone in 2023. More recently, audits at Nigeriaâs central bank have revealed widespread corruption, the latest being irregularities in forex administration.
âElection Countdown: Navigating Chaosâ
Submitted by Fatima Moolla | Doc Fellow | Trust
South Africans warned to strap in for chaos
Most news articles coming out of South Africa are focused on the upcoming elections, and the reliability of the democratic process. One such article is this recent BusinessTech article, that cautions South Africans to "strap in for chaos" ahead of elections, raising concerns about potential disruptions and the integrity of the democratic process. This piece examines the mounting apprehension and uncertainties surrounding South Africa's upcoming elections, urging us to scrutinize the stability and credibility of our democratic infrastructure. As we stand on the precipice of a crucial electoral moment, understanding the challenges becomes paramount. Beyond political intricacies, this is about safeguarding the essence of our democracy. In a society reliant on trust in democratic institutions, these discussions lay the groundwork for constructive reforms, reinforcing the pillars of our democracy. As we brace for the electoral storm, let us not just weather the chaos but use it as a compass to navigate towards a stronger, more resilient democracy.
âThe war on Gaza and Israel's Tech Diplomacy in Africaâ
Submitted by Youssef Mnaili | Postdoc Fellow | Trust
Investigation: Israelâs Spyware Diplomacy in Africa
In 2022, OrientXXI released an investigative report delving into Israel's strategic technological diplomacy in Africa . The piece sheds light on Ghana's procurement of the Pegasus spyware from the Israeli firm NSO Group. Despite Ghana's standing as a model of democracy in Africa, revelations of unauthorized surveillance using Pegasus to monitor political opposition raised serious concerns regarding governmental transparency and accountability. Furthermore, the article examines Israel's broader utilization of "spyware diplomacy" across Africa, showcasing its deployment of surveillance technology as a diplomatic tool to further its interests on the continent. Countries like CĂ´te d'Ivoire, Rwanda, Morocco, Togo, Kenya , Equatorial Guinea, Egypt, Cameroon, Uganda, and Ethiopia purchased Pegasus. Interestingly, they all supported Israelâs AU observer status bid. Amidst the current war in Gaza, which exacerbated divisions between the West and the Global South, Africa's response is notable. A strategic paper by Asher Lubotzky from the INSS (an IDF-associated think tank) presents a nuanced perspective on Africa's reaction to the conflict, recommending the strengthening of alliances with select African nations. It is crucial to monitor the evolving technological and security collaborations with African states in light of their shifting stances on the Israeli-Palestinian conflict.
Trust in Transition, is a Substack exploring the intricate interplay between trust, finance, and societal evolution within the African context. This space serves as a lens into the fascinating dynamics of trust infrastructures, financial landscapes, and their transformative impact on Africa's economic pathways.
About the Trust Project:
WISER is pleased to announce a new, long-term research project into African Trust Infrastructures. With generous support from Standard Bank we will be hosting a new doctoral research program examining the development of digital population registration systems, and their effects on institutions.Â
About WiSER: As a part of The Witwatersrand Institute for Social and Economic Research (WiSER), our mission is to spotlight African scholarship, dissecting the nuances of societal transitions, financial evolution, and trust frameworks. Established in 2001, WiSER has been at the forefront of interdisciplinary research, delving deep into the humanities and social sciences in South Africa.
