Stacking up the Benefits: Lessons from India’s Digital Journey

IMF Working Papers, March 31, 2023

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Canonical URL: Stacking up the Benefits: Lessons from India’s Digital Journey

Authors: Cristian Alonso, Tanuj Bhojwani, Emine Hanedar, Dinar Prihardini, Gerardo Uña, Kateryna Zhabska
Published: March 31, 2023
Series: IMF Working Papers
DOI: https://doi.org/10.5089/9798400240416.001

Foundational digital public infrastructure (DPI), consisting of unique digital identification, payments system and data exchange layer has the potential to support the transformation of the economy and support inclusive growth.
India’s foundational DPI, called India Stack, has been harnessed to foster innovation and competition, expand markets, close gaps in financial inclusion, boost government revenue collection and improve public expenditure efficiency.
India’s journey in developing a world-class DPI highlights powerful lessons for other countries embarking on their own digital transformation, in particular a design approach that focuses on shared building blocks and supporting innovation across the ecosystem.

India Stack — a combination of unique digital identification, payments system and data exchange layer — has been used to:
- foster innovation and competition;
- expand markets;
- close gaps in financial inclusion;
- boost government revenue collection;
- improve public expenditure efficiency.
The design approach emphasizing shared building blocks and support for ecosystem-wide innovation is central to the successful deployment and use of DPI.

Prioritize a design approach that focuses on shared building blocks to enable interoperability and reuse across services.
Support innovation across the ecosystem to leverage DPI for private-sector development and public-service delivery.
Use foundational DPI to address financial inclusion, revenue collection, and public expenditure efficiency.