Societal and Structural Risks of Biometric ID: Towards People’s Right to Privacy

Abstract

This article examines the societal and structural risks linked to digital ID programmes in Africa and the adequacy of regulatory and legislative responses that are in progress in this area. It unpacks the disjointedness between the societal and structural nature of the risks and the individualistic orientation of the right to privacy and data protection often presented as a response to such risks. To address these incongruities, the article argues for people’s right to privacy as a complementary layer of protection to mitigate the societal and structural risks associated with digital ID programmes. The account of people’s privacy proposed in this article draws on the people-centric African perspective on human rights as reflected in the African Charter on Human and People’s Rights (the Banjul Charter), African philosophy that is rooted in communality, scholarships in the area of group privacy, people-centric due diligence assessment, and the AU Data Policy Framework.