The ASEAN Workshop on Cross-Border Digital Identity and Verifiable Credentials will take place on August 18–19, 2026, in Bangkok, Thailand. The workshop will bring together representatives of ASEAN Member States, the ASEAN Secretariat, development partners, and technical experts.
Digital identity, digital wallets, and verifiable credentials are becoming important foundations for trusted digital transactions. Across ASEAN, Member States are developing national digital identity systems and exploring new ways for individuals and businesses to securely prove their identity, qualifications, licenses, permits, and other attributes. International standards and implementation models for digital credentials are also maturing rapidly, with major initiatives such as the European Digital Identity Wallet moving toward large-scale implementation. Greater regional alignment could enable ASEAN systems to operate securely and seamlessly across borders—both within the region and with major digital identity ecosystems elsewhere in the world—while supporting ASEAN’s wider digital integration agenda.
The development of recommendations for an ASEAN roadmap on cross-border digital identity and verifiable credentials is a deliverable under the World Bank Group–ASEAN Digital Senior Officials Meeting Work Plan for 2026, endorsed by ASEAN Digital Ministers in January 2026. The workshop forms part of the consultation process for this work, providing ASEAN Member States with an opportunity to review, refine, and build consensus around the draft recommendations.
On the first day, ASEAN Member States will share their national strategies, technical ecosystems, use cases, and cross-border priorities. Participants will also consider relevant international developments and the relationship between digital identity and wider ASEAN initiatives, including the ASEAN Digital Economy Framework Agreement and ASEAN Digital Masterplan 2030.
The second day is structured as a consultation on the draft roadmap. Participants will work together to:
- Identify and prioritize high-value regional use cases and potential pilot activities;
- Consider approaches to technical interoperability, trust frameworks, international standards, and cross-border recognition;
- Discuss the policy, regulatory, institutional, and governance foundations required for implementation; and
- Agree on priority actions and proposed revisions to the draft roadmap.
The workshop is intended for invited senior officials and technical representatives responsible for digital identity, trust services, digital wallets, verifiable credentials, and related regional initiatives.
The development of the roadmap and organization of the workshop are supported by the World Bank’s Digital Public Infrastructure Multi-Donor Trust Fund.