Which Governments Are Using Blockchain Right Now?

A comprehensive list of public sector blockchain experiments planned, in progress, or paused globally

More governments join the race to pass regulatory legislation and commence pilot projects centered around blockchain technology every day. Governments can leverage blockchain technology to provide cybersecurity, process optimization, and integrate hyperconnected services while bolstering trust and accountability. The distributed ledger format can be leveraged to support an array of government and public sector applications, including digital currency/payments, land registration, identity management, supply chain traceability, health care, corporate registration, taxation, voting (elections and proxy), and entitles management.

This article compiles a list of administrations that have launched or are preparing to launch blockchain projects around the world:

North America

Canada

• The National Research Council of Canada (NRC) announced that it had built an Ethereum blockchain explorer to experiment with transparent administration of gov’t contracts, and reliably sharing data with the public.
• Months later, the Government of Canada began exploring the use of additional blockchain technologies, namely IPFS.
• The NRC’s Industrial Research Assistance Program (NRC IRAP), hosted a blockchain kickoff session and unveiled its plans to test the viability of blockchain technology in administering the Program’s Contribution Agreements (innovation funding) with Canadian small and medium-sized enterprises. The experiment would provide a first real-use case of its kind for government and other public institutions.
• The Government of Canada (GC) is using blockchain technology to issue project-based employees with a kind of digital CV, providing “a permanent, self-owned and secure record of their skills and experiences.”
• The Governments of British Columbia, Ontario and Canada formed an open source collaboration, the Verifiable Organizations Network (VON). VON leverages self sovereign identity to enable organizations — and the people running those organizations — to conduct business online in a trusted manner.

Mexico

• The Mexican government is planning to conduct a public procurement procedure on a blockchain network.
• The Digital Government Unit — Ministry of Public Administration of Mexico launched HACKMX, a project that leverages blockchain technology to track and validate bids for public contracts.
• Former Mexican President Vicente Fox is working on a project which integrates blockchain with local agricultural activities. Fox has investigated applications of blockchain to increase transparency and reduce corruption within the Mexican government.
• The Mexican government passed legislation entitled the Financial Technology Institutions Law (Fintech Law), which aimed to promote financial inclusivity and technological innovation through a collaboration between Mexican regulators, legislators, and further important private actors in the field. This law also introduced a framework to regulate the use of cryptocurrencies.

United States

• The Defense Advanced Research Projects Agency (DARPA) is creating a blockchain cybersecurity shield — a blockchain-based platform to transmit secure messages or process transactions that can be traced through numerous channels. The application will be used in different to facilitate communication between units and headquarters, and transmitting information between intelligence officers and the Pentagon.
• The House of Representatives passed legislation, the “Advancing Innovation to Assist Law Enforcement Act” (H.R. 2613) which calls for the Financial Crimes Enforcement Network (FinCEN) to conduct a study on the use of blockchain, A.I., and other technologies.
• Section 1646 of the 2018 National Defense Authorization Act (H.R. 2810) requires that blockchain be assessed for military employment.
• The Naval Air Systems’ Fleet Readiness Center is working on a permissioned blockchain prototype to track aviation parts throughout their life cycles.
• The United States Air Force implemented the Blockchain Approach for Supply Chain Additive Manufacturing Parts (BASECAMP) project to secure long value chains with distributed ledger technology.
• The Department of Homeland Security issued a series of grants to explore innovative solutions that utilize blockchain technology to secure digital identity management.
• The United States Department of Health and Human Services (HHS) invested $49 million to build A.I. and blockchain solutions to reduce operational backlog and costs.

Access the complete list on the official ConsenSys Blog.

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