Canada and the EU have been developing comprehensive strategies on digital identity management, digital credentials and trust services. Digital identification solutions can provide safe and efficient access to public and private services such as healthcare, finance, and e-government platforms. In this respect, human-centric digital identity and digital credentials are a priority area of cooperation. Canada and the EU should continue working towards the interoperability of their trust services, which are key enablers for public administrations, business transactions and e-commerce.

Canada is currently standing up new platforms to enable a single point of access for users to sign in to government services, and for issuing and verifying digital credentials, including exploring interoperability of digital credentials across jurisdictions, leveraging global standards. In the EU, the Electronic Identification, Authentication and Trust Services (eIDAS) regulation provides a standardised framework for secure digital identification across member states, offering a cross-border, interoperable system that could serve as a model for Canada’s efforts.

To further strengthen compatible solutions, this webinar seeks to promote bilateral cooperation, share best practices, and explore how regulatory provisions can be reinforced through the creation of harmonised standards under the Canada – European Union Digital Partnership.

The main goal of this Expert Workshop is to bring together representatives of different stakeholders from government, industry, academia, and other relevant institutions to identify and discuss relevant use cases and provide recommendations for a possible follow-up. Proposals for concrete actions shall be agreed upon to boost the cooperation in this important topic, reinforcing peer learning and sharing of knowledge.