Vanessa Maresch discusses the rollout of electronic identity cards
June 23, 2025
The rollout of the country’s first Electronic Identity Card, or e-ID is a major step forward in our digital transformation journey, promising secure, biometric-enabled access to essential services in areas like banking, healthcare, education, and even elections.
But while this tech-driven initiative, supported by the UNDP and spearheaded by the Ministry of Home Affairs, sounds promising — it also raises important questions: What about data protection laws? How will digital identities be rolled out in a country where concerns around cybersecurity and personal privacy still linger? And how ready is Namibia for this kind of leap?
To unpack these issues and more, we were joined by IT expert Vanessa Maresch, who has been closely following the intersection of digital infrastructure, legal frameworks, and citizen data protection across Africa.
