KThe sponsored the PNG Digital Transformation Summit 2025 (DTS25) and this wasn’t just another industry talk-shop; it marked a pivotal moment in Papua New Guinea’s journey toward a sovereign Digital Public Infrastructure.

While the summit highlighted various strides in technology, the headline act was undoubtedly the operationalisation of the National Digital Identity Policy 2025. The message from the Acting Minister for Information and Communications Technology, Hon. Peter Tsiamalili Jr., is clear: the era of old-school connectivity is ending, and the era of the SevisPass has begun.

Here is what you need to know about the summit’s biggest reveal and how it changes the landscape for every citizen in PNG.

The Summit’s Core Reveal: SevisPass & SevisWallet

At DTS25, the government officially opened beta testing for SevisPass and the SevisWallet App, with a full public launch scheduled for December 24, 2025.

These aren’t just new apps; they are the backbone of PNG’s new digital ecosystem. The summit established that the days of business, government, industry and, most importantly, citizens relying only on insecure and outdated identity documents, are numbered. Instead, the future lies in SevisPass, the national Digital ID platform rolling out in 2026.

Hot on the heels of the Core Reveal: No ID, No Connection

The most immediate impact for businesses and citizens may come from the Ministry of ICT’s new proposed changes to SIM card registration rules.

Following the operationalisation of the National Digital Identity Policy 2025, the government has proposed to drawn a line in the sand:

  • The Mandate: Every active SIM card in PNG must be linked to a sovereign Digital ID (SevisPass).

  • The Timeline: A “Digital ID Grace Period” would run from January 1 to June 30, 2026 to allow time for business and citizens to prepare for the change.

  • The Consequence: After June 30, unlinked SIMs will be deactivated.

This is a massive shift for the telco industry. (Expect other industries to follow) Operators will move away from relying on hard copy forms of ID and instead rely on SevisPass (Digital ID) and SevisDEx (Secure Data Exchange) to verify users via digital tokens.

The SevisPass and SevisWallet app public launch is scheduled for December 24, 2025.

Banking the Unbanked in 10 Minutes

One of the summit’s most practical announcements was the partnership between the Department of ICT and MiBank.

Leveraging the new SevisPass infrastructure, this collaboration aims to solve one of PNG’s oldest challenges: financial inclusion. The new eKYC (Know Your Customer) integration will allow citizens to open a bank account directly from their mobile phones in under 10 minutes, bypassing the traditional paperwork hurdles that have kept many rural citizens out of the formal economy.

“Green” Data Sovereignty

In his keynote, Prime Minister James Marape pitched a bold new economic pillar for PNG: becoming a Green Data Hub for the Pacific.

With global tech giants like Oracle, Google, and SpaceX in the room, the PM highlighted PNG’s vast untapped hydro and geothermal potential. The pitch is simple: the world needs data centers, and data centers need power. PNG can offer clean, renewable energy to host the cloud infrastructure of the future, turning the country into a neutral, secure data haven for the region.

Cyber Resilience & Sovereign Clouds

Security was a major theme, with the summit hosting Cyber War Simulations run by CyberCX. These exercises tested the nation’s readiness to defend critical infrastructure, emphasizing that as we digitize, we must also fortify.

Discussions also covered the Google Pacific Cable system and Starlink, which are set to drastically improve bandwidth and redundancy. The conversation around “Data Sovereignty” suggests that while PNG welcomes global cloud providers (AWS, Huawei, Oracle), the government is intent on ensuring critical national data remains under PNG jurisdiction.

FutureGen: Esports & Hackathons

DTS25 wasn’t just suits and policy documents; it was also a celebration of the youth who will inherit this infrastructure.

  • Esports: The summit hosted a nationwide Call of Duty: Mobile tournament, acknowledging gaming as a legitimate industry and career path.

  • Innovation: Hackathons and “Inspire Talks” showcased young developers and content creators, signaling that the government sees the digital economy as a key driver for youth employment.

The Kyudo Verdict

The Digital Transformation Summit 2025 felt different from previous years. The focus has shifted from what we should do to how we are doing it.

For the average citizen, SevisPass will soon become real — Registering for a SevisPass and linking it to their SIM will soon become a priority. But looking at the broader picture, from instant digital banking to green cloud infrastructure, PNG is laying a foundation that could leapfrog traditional development hurdles.

2026 is shaping up to be the year PNG goes truly digital.