LLAVE CDMX

Government procedures are known for being complicated and time-consuming. Information available online is often incomplete or out of date. Face-to-face procedures nearly always require multiple visits to multiple government offices, agencies and desks. In unequal contexts access to them is also mediated by clientelistic and corrupt practices.

Llave CDMX allows for the creation of a digital means of identification, and a documents archive, such that city residents don’t have to re-submit them for every subsequent claim or application process. It allows citizens to carry out multiple procedures online, without uploading personal documents more than once and even without leaving their homes. 

If scaled globally, this solution would save time that is often wasted in gathering and sharing information and documentation that can be consulted or shared online, thus reducing time spent within government facilities; this offers a win-win scenario for users and their government.

Given Mexico City’s substantial population and the wide range of procedures and supports residents can request from the city government, reducing time spent within government facilities is critical for enhancing the quality of the attention provided. A digital tool such as Llave CDMX makes it possible to handle a higher amount of procedures simultaneously without relying on public officials only.

Around 271,000 users have verified their accounts and can now access their digital repository of documents. During the second half of 2020, about 50 more procedures will be implemented online. Such procedures are being administered under multiple Mexico City departments.

Further, the interactions between public officials and citizens have historically presented opportunities for public officials to fall into dishonest practices such as soliciting bribes for speeding up these same procedures. Reducing face-to-face interactions narrows the opportunities for such mismanagement and contributes to reducing the perception of corruption, historically a burden on the city’s development.

The target population are Mexico City residents, whether it be as individuals or as owners or managers of businesses. There is a wide range of procedures that can now be done online by using Llave CDMX, related to departments such as Citizen Safety, Economic Development, Women’s Affairs, Social Wellbeing, Employment, and Tourism, Mobility, to name a few. 

The solution tackles the issue of red tape being a burden for citizens and an obstacle for public servants to be more efficient in the attention they provide to the population. It addresses the citizens’ need to spend less time in government offices doing a procedure and getting effective answers while interacting with the authorities.

Due to the COVID-19 pandemic, the number of procedures available online increased significantly, as to contribute to the citizens’ economic activities. Regarding business owners, new procedures that allowed them to operate under certain rules during the confinement were also made available by using the Llave CDMX. Also, some procedures that required one face-to-face interaction were adapted to be carried completely online, in order to promote that people stayed home and prevent further contagion.

Mexico City grants universal WiFi access through 13,500 connectivity poles, and in 150 Centers located in marginalized areas with available computers without cost or time limit. This program was a Champion for the WSIS Prizes 2020. To create an account in llave.cdmx.gob.mx, only the CURP and email address are necessary. For procedures that required users to authenticate their identity, citizens may now upload a picture of their ID, a proof of residence and a picture of their face. The website is mobile-adapted so that people can enter it using any smart device. 

There are no competitors for digital authentication for citizens in Mexico. Other local governments in the country do not rely on a digital means of authentication for citizens to carry out procedures. The uniqueness of our solution is the use of biometrical data. By capturing a citizens fingerprints as well as confirming their identity and residency with official documents, we link them to a Llave CDMX account that is related to their national citizen ID (known as CURP). With this we ensure no one else can try to take their identity and that they will be the only ones that can access and use their digital ID.

Llave CDMX is one of the signature projects of the Digital Agency and has been in place since its founding in January 2019. We have broadened the means of identification, from a very basic scheme including only traditional documents such as the ID and the proof of residence, towards the implementation of fingerprint scanners.

These are already widely used by governments around the world for authenticating someone’s identity. This scanners are commonly used in customs offices or government agencies that issue IDs. We use them as an additional security measure, to make sure that the person actually is who she or he is claiming to be, and further protect his or her personal data. By doing so, it is possible for that person to carry out more procedures online by using Llave CDMX, since we are confident that there is no chance of identity theft or fraud.

Since the beginning of the pandemic in March, the number of enrolled users increased by 300,000. This increase is a clear indication of how useful Llave CDMX is when people are unable to access government services in person. 

Llave CDMX is one of many policies that are being implemented in Mexico City for the first time, as part of the Digital Agency’s strategy to set the bases towards becoming a smart city. We are well aware we still have a long way to go. However, this project, as well as the others carried out by the Agency, despite being only recently implemented, has proved useful to solve issues that have been pressing on both citizens and authorities for a very long time, but that previous governments had not addressed. 

Interacting with the government is always costly for citizens; procedures that are carried out regularly prove to be troublesome every time because the online information is out of date, the official is not properly trained, or a number of other reasons. By using a technological tool that replaces the traditional procedure, interacting with the government becomes less costly for both parties and makes it possible to improve the quality of the services provided.

The pandemic proved that this tool is a functional replacement for procedures that previously made it mandatory for citizens to show up in a government facility in order to identify themselves in person. Now, many procedures that could not be carried out digitally are available via the Llave CDMX. This allows for citizens to continue interacting with the government despite being unable to leave home due to the pandemic, and contributes to lower the risk of further contagion because the people can actually stay home and still fulfill their procedures.

The solution uses fingerprint scanners as a means of identification, besides the regular documentation requested to carry out most procedures. Once uploaded, this basic documentation, necessary for all procedures, makes up a personal electronic file linked to a particular citizen ID (CURP). 

The CURP is a basic means of identification that every Mexican gets after birth, no matter where they are born. In this sense, Llave CDMX can be used by any member of a marginalized or vulnerable group, as long as they have their CURP and internet access.

The web page to use Llave CDMX is under constant improvement in order to achieve the best user experience for citizens. To this day, it possesses a simple home page that explains what Llave CDMX is and enlists useful links to additional pages with more information on Llave CDMX. When logged in, users can visualize their profile and update their address as well as their contact information. There are also useful informative texts that explain how each section works. Also, the tool underwent a UX process and was user-tested before it was launched.

They can also visualize the status of their account, which include whether or not they possess a digital ID.

Since it was being designed, Llave CDMX was conceived as a system that could be interoperable among the systems used by different government agencies of the City. By standardizing the documents required by public authorities, the systems that make up Llave allow for the digital interaction between individuals and the Mexico City Government, and makes it possible for other public agencies to use this system by adapting it to their administrative needs. The software used by this tool is free.

Currently, the APIs are used internally among government agencies only. 

Llave CDMX is an accessible tool for citizens as it can be accessed through any mobile device or computer with a web browser. Furthermore, aided by the newly installed Free WiFi outposts throughout Mexico City and the existence of Points of Innovation, Freedom, Art, Education and Knowledge (known by the acronym PILARES in Spanish), people can have access to technological tools that enable the usage of Llave CDMX.

Also, citizens can contact qualified public officials through the official email (with the URL llave@cdmx.gob.mx) if they have any questions or need technical assistance. Through this channel, they will receive the needed information or will define a new channel (such as a telephone call) with a public official who will assist them.

Currently, this solution serves 350,000 users. In one more year, we intend to double the number. In five years, we expect a minimum of three million people to be enrolled in Llave CDMX, thus being able to carry out several procedures fully online.

In the near future, we intend to incorporate biometric technology to the means of identity verification we use, besides the traditional means of identification, like the ID, the proof of residence, an the other documents that are usually requested from citizens to carry out a procedure. Another key objective is to enroll many more users than we have now, in order to transform Llave CDMX into the main channel of fulfilling citizen requests and asking for procedures and official documents and permits. 

By turning Llave CDMX into the main means of getting official documents and carrying out government procedures, the red tape would be reduced significantly, as well as the amount of people visiting government offices. Given the current international context, this is critical in order to provide proper attention to city residents without having them risk their health. 

Once the pandemic is over, the increased level of digitization of procedures via Llave CDMX will still be an asset to the city, since providing timely in-person attention to 9 million citizens has always been a challenge to city officials. 

The first obstacle towards the universal use of Llave CDMX was the lack of WiFi access for many. This has been overcome by achieving universal WiFi access in the city, through the installation of 13,694 access points located in all 16 municipalities. 

The main barrier for the implementation of the work plan of the Digital Agency for Public Innovation as a whole is the lack of resources, both human and financial. The Digital Citizenship Law, passed in December 2018 by the City Congress, legally enables the Agency to carry out measures and projects that, as Llave CDMX, intend to implement digital and smart city policies in the City. However, the very nature of the Agency’s projects makes them expensive both in human and financial resources. Despite the public resources that are allocated to the Agency each year from the city budget, we are constantly seeking for alternative funding sources.

The COVID-19 pandemic translated into an immediate need for increased digitization and using data for policy making and strategic decision making, thus increasing significantly the workload of the Agency. It also meant, however, that the other projects the Agency intended to fulfill during 2020 that were not related to digitization had to be postponed and it is uncertain whether the resources needed to carry them out will still be available once it is technically feasible to carry them out.

Another challenge is that the solution is not widely known among the population, despite it being free and available for everyone with access to a smart device. There are hundreds of thousand of people who could benefit from this solution, but they have not heard of it or do not trust it.

We plan to continue to provide visibility to the projects we carry out, with the aim of promoting our best practices and learn about further opportunities for funding or alliances with organizations that seek to enhance the impact of projects like ours.

Since its creation in January 2019, the Agency has worked together with the British Embassy in Mexico and the Development Bank of Latin America (CAF) to broaden the scope of projects related to transparency and accountability. These issues have been pressing in the Mexican context for many years and there are significant efforts to address them. However, we have not yet teamed up with any organization for broadening the scope of digitization and digital identity projects such as Llave CDMX.

The Digital Agency for Public Innovation is a public entity belonging to the Government of Mexico City. Its Head answers directly to the Mayor of Mexico City.

The Agency’s staff consists of over 150 people, all of them working full-time. Over a hundred of them are devoted to the development of the software that the Agency provides to other government bodies, and the software the Agency itself needs to fulfill its own agenda. The rest is in charge of administrative tasks, communication and developing partnerships with other local governments, both in Mexico and abroad, and with international organizations related to smart cities.

The Agency’s team brings together software developers with high-quality skills and experience, thus turning the Agency into the biggest “software factory” in a government agency in the country. The Agency also hosts the Regional Office for Latin America for the World Smart Sustainable Cities Organization (WeGO), which has allowed us to reach international counterparts, share with them some of our initiatives and learn from theirs. 

The Agency’s position is unique inside the Mexico City government, since it brings together functions that formerly belonged to several different entities. This allows for the Agency to have the full view and authority to coordinate efforts towards digital transformation and citizenship. 

The British Embassy in Mexico and the Development Bank of Latin America (CAF) have partnered with us to support Tianguis Digital (“Digital Marketplace), an initiative that promotes accountability and transparency in the information related to public procurement procedures. These have historically been opportunities for mismanagement of public resources; Tianguis Digital aims to change that and to open up the procurement processes to all potential suppliers who are interested in taking part in the government’s projects.

As a public entity, our model is based on the public policy agenda of Mexico City, and our main objective is to provide a digital solution to the obstacles residents face when interacting with the government. Llave CDMX intends to make it possible for citizens to carry out several procedures without actually going to a government office themselves. Achieving this implies paperless procedures, less time spent in getting to the government office and less room for mismanagement or request of bribes from public servants towards citizens.

The target of this project is any Mexico City resident in need of requesting some kind of service from the City authorities.

The Agency is allocated public resources on an annual basis, which allow for it to operate and cover the expected expenses. However, we are always interested in partnering with international organizations that can provide further resources for the projects that are already in place, as to broaden its scope or improve their operations, as well as for the upcoming projects, for the same reasons.

As aforementioned, the Agency does not generate revenue, it being a public entity. 

The Agency is open to receiving grants from international organizations that are interested in contributing to improve smart city policies and build the path towards digitization. Furthermore, the Agency aims to increase its amount of counterparts and allies who are devoted to the same causes the Agency is, in order to benefit from their expertise and experience.

The budget allocated to the Agency for 2020 is 5,760,254 USD.

We are seeking partnership opportunities with organizations who could provide further funding to strengthen the scope and visibility of Llave CDMX, and who could provide the means for the implementation of biometrics as a means of identification. We are also interested in sharing our experience with other countries that are seeking to achieve similar goals and that are using similar technologies to do so. We strongly believe that pitching our solution at the Mission Billion Challenge Pitch Event would be a valuable opportunity to find these potential partners.

We are seeking for a partner who could provide an in-kind donation of the necessary equipment to implement biometrics as a means of identifying citizens and building a digital citizenship for all Mexico City residents. We are also open to partnering with counterparts who could provide expertise in similar solutions implemented elsewhere and who could help us overcome the challenge of lack of exposure and the consequent little enrollment that Llave CDMX has achieved so far. 

We are open to work with partners with different backgrounds, but whose experience and funding might prove useful to advance the project and have it increase the impact it has had so far. It being a new technology that has never before been used in the City, there are many major challenges to overcome, especially the lack of enrollment and the lack of equipment to implement biometric technology. 

Organizations who are devoted to the implementation of smart policies in developing countries would be valuable allies, since they are familiar with the challenges that a city like ours faces when it comes to implementing innovative solutions.