Ethiopia and Zanzibar developing e-government apps built on Ukraine’s Diia technology

Estonia recently launched the mRiik application, based on Ukraine's Diia e-government app. Ethiopia and Zanzibar have followed suit and also started developing their own apps using Ukraine's technology. 

The announcement was made by Mykhailo Fedorov, the Deputy Prime Minister and Minister of Digital Transformation, during the Diia in DC conference in the United States, Interfax-Ukraine reports.

"It is a quality product," Minister Fedorov praised the Diia codes, stating that Estonia has already adopted them for their own state app. He further mentioned that Ethiopia and Zanzibar are implementing Diia, and negotiations are underway with other countries to establish similar agreements.

USAID Administrator Samantha Power highlighted that Ukraine had been known as a major exporter of wheat and corn, earning the reputation of being the world's breadbasket. However, now the country is gaining fame for its new product.

"The digital ministry is working to make Diia an open-source tool available to other countries to develop their civil infrastructure," Power said. "Other countries, including governance leaders like Estonia, are taking this experience, adapting it, building something similar to Diia at home."

In January, USAID pledged its support to countries seeking to embrace digital transformation and strengthen their e-government capabilities. USAID is actively working with Colombia and Zambia to drive progress in these areas.

The USAID chief said the fund would continue developing a close partnership with Ukraine for the Diia growth, promoting cooperation with other countries "so Ukrainian leadership inspires new digital transformations globally."

Background

Diia is a versatile application, an online platform, and a renowned e-governance brand in Ukraine. Introduced in 2020, the Diia app allows Ukrainian citizens to use electronic documents on their mobile devices, as ID or passport, instead of tangible ones, enabling seamless sharing. The Diia portal provides an extensive range of more than 50 governmental services.

The United States Agency for International Development (USAID) is strengthening digital support for Ukraine and will support the development of Diia in other countries. The agency will allocate $650,000 to distribute Ukraine's digital experience and the Diia mobile app to other countries.