Pakistan's internet slowdowns, Nauru's Starlink contract, and Singapore moves to ban deepfakes

Edition #89 Meanwhile, India has made moves to link its lending platforms to the country's DPI, while Singapore's DBS bank completes a pilot for blockchain-based government payments…

Last week, we were thinking about the procurement of Generative AI in government in the contexts of two major reports from Public and the Tony Blair Institute.

This week, our focus is on another type of government spending, digital payments. India’s central bank has this week launched a lending platform with KYC linked to Aadhaar, the country’s digital ID, while elsewhere Singapore’s DBS bank has successfully completed a pilot to disburse government grants via blockchain (particularly useful for social payments and international aid).

Our main stories this week:

• Pakistan’s attempt to tamper with the internet is leading to economic turmoil

• Singapore moves to ban deepfakes ahead of the general election

• Code to country: what governments can learn from open-source

As a reminder, we have recently begun to expand our digital government coverage away from just Substack and onto Linkedin, Twitter and Instagram. For original content, audience engagement, and roundups of all our pieces, feel free to follow us over on those channels. Also check out our sister newsletter, interweave.africa.

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Pakistan’s attempt to tamper with the internet is leading to economic turmoil - Manik Aftab, The Diplomat

Pakistan is experiencing ongoing internet disruptions, raising concerns for the services industry and citizens’ access to digital communications, with government actions blamed for the infrastructure issues causing the slowdown.

• Millions of Pakistanis are currently unable to use WhatsApp effectively due to prolonged internet slowdowns, with the government attributing the issue to VPN usage.

• The disruptions have prompted judicial inquiries, with Pakistan's High Courts seeking explanations from government officials and the Pakistan Telecommunication Authority (PTA).

• The internet crisis is exacerbating challenges for Pakistan's services sectors, with warnings of significant economic losses and potential relocation of multinational companies.

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Singapore moves to ban deepfakes ahead of the general election - Nicholas Yong, Rest of World

After deepfake videos of Singapore’s former prime minister, Lee Hsien Loong, appeared to show him giving tips on investment opportunities and discussing foreign affairs, the country’s authorities are now considering a ban on AI-generated videos ahead of a general election.

• Singapore has not historically faced the same challenges with deepfakes as neighbors like India and the Philippines. But the Lee incident has prompted authorities to consider a temporary ban ahead of the general election later this year.

• Singapore has several laws to tackle misinformation that can also be applied to AI-generated content, like the Protection from Online Falsehoods and Manipulation Act (POFMA). The so-called “fake news law” permits a minister to declare that information posted online is “false” and order the publisher or creator to correct or remove it.

• POFMA has been criticized for being wielded too often against critics of the government, including during the 2020 general election, when ministers issued several notices to opposition politicians and parties. Critics worry that a ban on deepfakes would further encourage this trend.

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Code to country: what governments can learn from open-source software - David Durant, aPolitical

The iterative, open and collaborative methodologies that are fundamental to open-source can also lead to more effective, resilient and citizen-centered public services, argues David Durant.

• At the time of writing, says Durant, the UK government has very limited means of testing whether introducing new policies would break the delivery of existing ones. Introducing the open-source/ agile principle of “working software being the primary measure of progress”, and focusing on a large number of small simple tests, could fix this.

• Citing Public Digital’s The Radical How, Durant also looks at how open-source software teams tend to be long-running and multidisciplinary, in contrast to the short-term contracted teams that develop software in government.

• With some exceptions (Taiwan, and the UK Policy Lab) governments often neglect to build in the open. Doing so could avoid bugs and breaks, Durant argues, following the law that “given enough eyeballs, all bugs are shallow”.

Our Take: This article’s implications are wide-ranging, from funding structures to target-setting with regard to policy, and offer fertile grounds for thought for practitioners. In looking to embrace some of these principles, policymakers might look to IGO projects like GovStack, where these ideas are employed much more effectively.

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GovTech News in Brief

India’s central bank launches lending platform connected to Aadhaar KYC - Abhishek Jadhav, Biometric Update

The Reserve Bank of India has announced a nationwide launch of the Unified Lending Interface, an open platform which will enable financial institutions to “plug and play” with Aadhaar - India’s digital identity system - transforming how KYC works in the country.

DTA introduces new training program for senior leaders of digital projects​ in Australia - Digital Transformation Authority

Australia is rolling out a new mandatory training program for senior officials in 2025 to strengthen their ability to govern and deliver digital transformation projects successfully.

North Jakarta City launches ‘local ChatGPT’ to provide public service information - Mochamad Azhar, GovInsider

Indonesia's North Jakarta City has launched a ‘local ChatGPT’ platform, jakartautara.info, to enhance public service delivery by providing citizens with personalized and accurate information on services like ID cards and health facilities.

Kosovo central bank hails ‘significant step forward’ in digital finance push - Ian Hall, Global Government FinTech

Kosovo’s Central Bank has signed a cooperation agreement with the International Finance Corporation (IFC) in an attempt to “enhance the digital financial service landscape”, including a commitment to increasing the take-up of cashless payments.

New Zealand Police reveals facial recognition policy - David Hollingworth, CyberDaily

The New Zealand police force has outlined how it will use facial recognition technology going forward, including the safeguards that will be implemented to ensure it is not misused.

Nauru signs up for Starlink Community Gateway service - RNZ

A state-owned entity in the tiny Pacific country of Nauru has signed a deal with Starlink to bring fiber-like speeds to the islands with a Community Gateway Service.

European Union replacing passport stamps with biometrics - Ben Schlappig, One Mile at a Time

The EU has committed to introducing a new Entry/Exit System (EES) for foreigners, based entirely on biometrics rather than passport stamps.

Our Take: This move looks set to reduce potential border fraud. Other countries have already started to prepare for this, with the UK government promising £10.5 million (US$13.8 million) for new registration kiosks for biometric border checks at the border.

DBS bank completes pilot for government grants on blockchain - James Field, Coingeek

Singapore-based DBS has successfully piloted a grant solution to improve efficiency of government payouts, authorizing transfers on the blockchain once beneficiaries met payment conditions.

Taiwanese cabinet greenlights NT$1.8 billion digital modeling plan - Focus Taiwan

The Taiwanese government has signed off on a new project to build digital twins for businesses to explore more business opportunities. 

Our Take: Digital twins are nothing new, but there is an interesting attempt at ecosystem building in the way the government talks about this project. To make the project successful, the government has said that they hope local governments and private-sector investors will participate in it to build it into a fully-fledged digital modeling ecosystem.

Government backs Danish version of ChatGPT - Gerard O’Dwyer, Computer Weekly

Denmark’s Chamber of Commerce is leading a national consortium to launch a Danish language version of ChatGPT, which they hope to make freely available.

Preparing the NHS for the AI Era: a new tool to map untapped health data - Oliver Large & Charlotte Refsum, Tony Blair Institute

The Tony Blair Institute has unveiled a new tool to map where data is generated across the UK’s National Health Service, helping in turn to guide efficiencies in pivoting to a health system fit for AI.

Approaches to Digital Public Infrastructure in the Global South - Romina Bandura, Madeleine McLean, and Caroline Smutny, CSIS

CSIS compares DPI approaches in India, Ukraine, Brazil and Zambia, showcasing the positive elements and challenges facing each approach.

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Upcoming GovTech Events

Public Service Data Live returns to turbocharge UK government digital public services - Richard Johnstone, Global Government Forum

Global Government Forum’s Public Service Data Live conference will return on Thursday 19 September with an agenda focused on how data and artificial intelligence can help unlock better government services.