A citizen queueing at a government office to submit a photocopy of their National Identity (NID) card is a common sight in Bangladesh. What makes this frustrating is that the government already holds this information. If that same citizen applies for a driving license, a passport or a social welfare allowance, they must repeatedly prove who they are with resubmit paperwork and stand in ques. When NID details are corrected and updating them across other departments requires a tedious cycle of physically visiting offices with fresh photocopies.
This bureaucratic hassle stems from a single issue: a lack of interoperability.
The Reality Behind the Digital Progress
Bangladesh has made significant strides in e-governance over the past decade. By 2024, the country climbed to 100th place in the UN e-Government Development Index, the highest among Least Developed Countries (LDCs). With over 9,000 digital service centers launched and more than 100 million smart NID cards issued for the digital foundation is undeniably there.
However a critical gap remains. The draft of the National Digital Transformation Strategy acknowledges that scattered digital assets and isolated data repositories have slowed down the IT sector. None of the government’s 700+ online services are completely end-to-end digital; at some point the citizens must still show up in person to submit papers.
Because ministries operate as isolated digital islands as citizens are left to bridge the gaps.
Understanding Interoperability
Interoperability is simply the ability of different government IT systems to securely exchange data. It eliminates the need for citizens to resubmit information.
[Smart NID Data] ──(Secure API Gateway)──> [Passport / Driving License / Welfare] = (Automatic Cross-Verification)
A robust interoperable system relies on three pillars:
Data Standards: Common formats so different systems understand each other.
Secure Gateways: Managed Application Programming Interfaces (APIs) to control data flow.
Legal Frameworks: Strict rules governing who can access data, under what conditions and how privacy is protected.
Implementing a "submit once, apply everywhere" model streamlines business registrations, slashes welfare verification times from weeks to minutes and systematically closes loopholes used for financial corruption or subsidy leakages.
Global Lessons: Estonia, India and Singapore
Estonia: Driven by its open-source "X-Road" data exchange system launched in 2001, Estonia digitized 100% of its public services by late 2024. X-Road automatically handles 97% of data transfers between institutions, saving the country roughly 1,345 work-years annually without a single major data breach in over two decades.
India: The "India Stack" (combining Aadhaar, UPI, and DigiLocker) proves that integration works at scale. Linking welfare programs to Aadhaar saves India approximately $10 billion annually by eliminating administrative waste and fake beneficiaries, while cutting identity verification costs by 97%.
Singapore: Through a centralized digital identity system, residents access over 2,000 services with one login. Singapore’s success emphasizes governance over technology, utilizing strict oversight and independent audits to build public trust.
The Blueprint for Bangladesh
Bangladesh already possesses the essential building blocks: 100 million smart NIDs, the D-Nothi platform, the Bangladesh Computer Council (BCC) infrastructure and the Bangladesh National Digital Architecture (BNDA) framework. The bottleneck is institutional not technological.
To transition from isolated digitization to full integration, five urgent steps are required:
Mandate the BNDA: Issue an executive order making the Bangladesh National Digital Architecture standard mandatory for all new ministry IT projects before funding is approved.
Centralize Oversight: Empower a dedicated body, like the Governance Innovation Unit at the Prime Minister's Office to oversee the national data exchange platform.
Enact Data Protection Laws: Pass comprehensive data privacy legislation in parallel with technical upgrades to secure public trust.
Launch Target Pilots: Achieve visible integration within 18 months by piloting full interoperability in high-impact sectors like land management health records and social safety nets.
Engage Stakeholders: Open the digital transformation roadmap to consultations with civil society, academia and the private sector to ensure transparency.
Author: Rashed Mosharraf, Technology Consultant, In-Governance and Digital Transformation
Source: e-Estonia (2024), LightCastle Partners (2025), LightCastle Partners/ADB (2025), The Daily Star (2025), The Business Standard (2025), Chandler Governance Institute (2023), World Bank Group; Nortal (2024), Estonia E-Governance Academy (2024), Bangladesh Computer Council (2019).
