Benin, Ghana and Rwanda have successfully linked their national digital identity platforms and performed end‑to‑end identity checks across the three systems.

The test used synthetic data – invented records created for the pilot – so no traveller’s real identity was verified in another country.

Smart Africa announced the Phase 1 results from Kigali on 20 October 2026, noting that the technical “plumbing” works in a controlled environment but is not yet usable at borders.

Each nation retains its own ID database, while the Smart Africa Data Exchange (SADX) routes verification requests between them without storing the underlying records.

The Smart Africa Trust Alliance (SATA) provides the rulebook governing how participating countries trust each other’s data, ensuring no central African identity repository is created.

Smart Africa’s director of digital transformation, Ralph Oyini Mbouna, says the same verification mechanism could later support services such as bank account opening, hotel check‑in, business registration, diploma recognition and vaccination proof, though none have been tested yet.

Mbouna also mentioned interest in dedicated border lanes and automated e‑gates, but clarified that these ideas were not part of Phase 1.

The pilot does not alter visa requirements or immigration law; each country will continue to apply its own entry rules while the identity check itself could become faster.

Funding and technical support for the pilot come from the African Development Bank, the European Union, Norway’s Norad, Co‑Develop and Ascend Digital Solutions, which supplies the underlying technology.

Phase 2 will move to a controlled operational pilot, testing the system within real immigration and data‑protection procedures, with a target launch in early 2027 pending national approvals.

Kenya is not among the 19 signatories to the SATA Declaration, so Kenyan IDs are not part of the current test and no changes affect Kenyan travellers; Kenya would need to submit a letter of intent and sign the declaration to join future phases.