Blockchain in the Public Sector The document discusses blockchain technology and its potential uses in the public sector. It begins with an overview of how blockchains work and the differences between public/private and permissioned/permissionless blockchains. It then covers benefits like transparency and challenges like data storage. Several potential use cases for government are presented, such as land registry, supply chain management, identity management, and voting. The document concludes with examples of blockchain initiatives already underway in various countries and poses questions for further discussion.

1. Blockchain in the Public Sector
Topics in Distributed
Ledger Technology
h o s s e i n . b a h a r m a n d @ u i a . n oc i e m . u i a . n o @ H B a h a r m a n d
Blockchain and its Use in the Society
Hossein Baharmand
June 06, 2019

2. Plan
02
03
04
01
What is it and how it works
BLOCKCHAIN OVERVIEW
Why we may use it and why we may not?
BENEFITS AND CHALLENGES
Where we can use this stuff?
POTENTIAL USE CASES
TAKE AWAYS AND QUESTIONS
Slides available at http://tiny.cc/opsinewsletter

3. Blockchain:
behind the scenes

5. Source: Baran, Paul, 1964, “On Distributed Communications: Introduction to Distributed Communications Networks”, United
States Air Force Project Rand
Centralized vs. Decentralized vs. Distributed

6. How Blockchains are Designed

7. Blockchain Types

8. Benefits
and
Challenges

9. Benefits & Opportunities
Blockchain can be a solution
01
Decentralized and
shared control
02 Immutability
03 Assets and exchanges
04 Efficiency
05
Time and resource
savings
06 Trustless, open and transparent

10. Challenges & Limitations
Blockchain is not a cure-all
01 Immutability!
02 Data storage
03 Ownership and maintenance
04 Costs
05 Resistance to change
06 Missing regulations

11. Potential Use
Cases

12. Example: BenBen (Ghana)
Problem:
For land property, Ghana lacked a systemic way to determining the legal existence of parcels and to track land
ownership titles. This prevented authorities and property owners from having clear certainty and visibility over
what belongs to whom, resulting in regular disputes. In addition, because previous processes were on paper, it
could take over a year to register the sale/purchase of a property, which was a fraud risk for both sellers and
buyers.
Solution:
BenBen provides an Ethereum-run digital register system of all land registries across Ghana. It is able to certify
land information through the cross-cutting of satellite imagery and on-the-ground verifications, working hand-
in-hand with local stakeholders in the land market. It aggregates all the information such that financial
institutions and the Lands Commission have real-time access to the data. Property transaction times have been
reduced by 75% and court disputes have been reduced.

13. Potential Use Cases
Use Case Description
Identity Establishing and maintaining identities for citizens and residents (birth
certificates, marriage licenses, visas, death records).
Personal records Interoperable health records, insurance records, etc.
Land title registry Details and historic records related to real estate and property transactions.
Supply chain management,
inventorying
Tracking an asset from its creation, transportation, purchase, and
inventorying.
Benefits, entitlements, and aid Social security, medical benefits payments, domestic and international aid.
Anticipatory/automated payments could be automated through Smart
Contracts.
Contract and vendor management Tracking and paying vendors, managing purchase commitments and
transactions, and monitoring schedule performance. Can allow for perfect
transparency of government expenditures.
Voting Enabling new methods of digital voting, ensuring eligibility, accurate
counting, and auditing (e.g., to avoid ballot-rigging).
Streamlining interagency
processes
Blockchains and smart contracts can automate transaction handling and
improve information sharing – allows each agency to better focus on their
own mission and tech without as much need to consider others tech.

14. Now: 202 Blockchain Initiatives in 45 Countries
Source: OECD analysis of data collected by The Illinois Blockchain Initiative (March 2018)

15. TAKE AWAYS
h o s s e i n . b a h a r m a n d @ u i a . n o@ H B a h a r m a n d
Questions?
• Blockchain is a distributed ledger where
information is stored as blocks. it offers
transparency, immutability, and security.
• The difference between public and private
blockchains is basically who can join while
the difference between permissioned and
permissionless is about who can add or edit
data.
• The application areas can vary a lot from
identity management to insurance, etc.

16. References and more read
1. https://blockgeeks.com/guides/what-is-blockchain-technology/
2. https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Blockchain
3. https://blog.bigchaindb.com/three-blockchain-benefits-ae3a2a5ab102
4. https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Digital_currency
5. https://www2.deloitte.com/us/en/pages/public-sector/articles/blockchain-opportunities-for-health-
care.html
6. https://medium.com/@VitalikButerin/the-meaning-of-decentralization-a0c92b76a274
7. https://bitsonblocks.net/2016/02/29/a-gentle-introduction-to-immutability-of-blockchains/
8. http://events.computer.org/rockstars-blockchain-healthcare/
9. https://www.wired.com/2017/02/moving-patient-data-messy-blockchain-help/
10.http://www.colleaga.org/sites/default/files/12-55-blockchain-based-approach-final.pdf
11.https://www.lexology.com/library/detail.aspx?g=9909dcea-daa0-4fac-8ffa-356d46a0d079