South Sudan — Biometric Registration Update (May 2019)

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IOM’s biometric registration system has been active since 2014, with over 776,000 beneficiaries active in its database to date. Since August 2018, IOM and the World Food Programme (WFP) are collaborating on the project “Enhancing targeted food distribution through biometric data management” seeking to contribute to increased food security throughout South Sudan. Under this collaboration, IOM is responsible for checking the eligibility of households receiving assistance through fingerprint authentication at selected distribution sites. Those beneficiaries whose households do not retrieve their food assistance in three consecutive distributions are assumed to no longer be present in the location and subsequently become deactivated. As a result, fluctuations in registered beneficiary numbers can be observed on an ongoing basis. Biometric registration, complemented through regular authentication, enhances beneficiary targeting, avoiding duplications through fingerprint scanning and ensuring that the assistance reaches the intended beneficiaries. Biometric maintenance work is supported by a variety of donors, including DFID, ECHO, SDC and USAID alongside funds received from WFP.