MOSIP was delighted to host Bill Gates and the team from BMGF India on 4th March, 2023. MOSIP is fortunate to have had the foundation's support over many years, and we were honoured to have this opportunity to showcase MOSIP’s milestones, major achievements, and roadmaps to the team and their illustrious founder.
The visit was held in the Saanchi Gallery at the Bangalore International Centre (BIC), with MOSIP leadership, presenting their work to Mr. Gates and his team.
Prof. S. Rajagopalan (President, MOSIP), began by setting a context for MOSIP’s work, and the global challenges the project set out to address. The ID lifecycle from ID registration to issuance and authentication was presented by Krishnan Rajagopalan (Head, Country Implementations), supported by Resham Chugani and Rounak Nayak, Product Owners at MOSIP.
The second half of the visit highlighted our budding ecosystem of commercial partners, adopting countries, and integration initiatives. Nagarajan Santhanam (Chief Dissemination Officer) went on to update Mr. Gates on progress in 10 MOSIP-adopting countries, while Sanjith Sundaram (Head – Biometric Ecosystem) presented an impressive, and rapidly-expanding, commercial ecosystem of technology providers and System Integrators that are currently partnering with the project.
Ramesh Narayanan (Chief Technology Officer) and Sasikumar Ganesan, (Head – Engineering), concluded the walkthrough by introducing MOSIP’s myriad efforts in putting digital ID to use, with our integrations and use cases on display, setting the path to digital transformation.
Mr. Gates and the MOSIP team also discussed the potential of using digital identity systems to drive financial inclusion and service delivery in MOSIP-adopting countries around the world.
As we head into a future where the need for robust, inclusive digital infrastructure has become increasingly apparent, his enthusiastic responses and questions provided much encouragement and food for thought.
The Bill & Melinda Gates Foundation has been a long-standing supporter of the MOSIP project. Launched in 2000, the BMGF is one of the largest philanthropic organisations in the world, and has spent over two decades fighting poverty, disease, and inequity in collaboration with local leaders and innovators. We are grateful for the team’s passionate involvement, support, and encouragement over the years in facilitating the growth of the MOSIP project and its global community, as we continue to strive towards unique legal identity for all.
We thank Mr. Gates for including us in his busy schedule in India, and the Bill & Melinda Gates Foundation for their continued support for MOSIP's work, and look forward to more such visits in the future!
