Criticism of the regime of President Kais Saied for tightening the security grip on opponents (Reuters)
Jeune Afrique magazine said that Tunisian President Kais Saied is preparing to provide the Tunisian General Directorate of National Security with a modern digital identification and biometric identification system, under the pretext of fighting terrorism and crime, despite the stifling economic crisis that the country is witnessing.
The magazine explained that this automated biometric identification system program was designed by Idema, a multinational technology company based in France, that provides identity-related security services.
This company sells facial recognition systems and other identification products and programs to private companies and governments.
The cost of this program, called "MBIS", is about 6 million euros by the Technical Cooperation Department "Civipol" of the French Ministry of the Interior.
The system is equipped with verification and comparison tools, and management of fingerprints, palm and face, according to the magazine.
The "IDEMA" program is used in particular by Germany, some American states, South Africa, and Arab countries.
The group's sales volume reached 2.7 billion euros in 2022.
This French aid contract for Tunisia - which extends for 3 years - is considered the second of its kind.
In 2015, the Tunisian Ministry of the Interior, led by Najm El-Gharsali, requested a similar digital identification system from the Idema company, which is “Murophobes,” but its installation did not begin until 2017 due to delayed payment by the Tunisian government.
Among the objectives of this program - according to Jeune Afrique - is to help Tunisia restructure and strengthen “the technical and operational capabilities of state agencies contributing to the security of land and sea borders to combat new forms of crime and terrorism.”
Source: Jeune Afrique