In my work supporting governments in Latin America and the Caribbean as they build digital public infrastructure (DPI), I often help teams identify problems that can be solved through a DPI approach, select a digital public good (DPG) to address them, and then support the implementation process.
Time and again, one fundamental design choice comes up: Should we build clean, modular systems, or tightly integrated user experiences? At scale, tightly coupled ecosystems can turn into tangled webs, where every change breaks something else, and the system becomes nearly impossible to maintain.
A recent case makes this dilemma clear.
I was working with a national digital government agency that was deploying INJI, a DPG for issuing and verifying official documents as verifiable credentials. Instead of relying on paper certificates or printed licenses, citizens could now access and share official records directly from an app.
But this led to a tough decision: Should they build a separate app for verifiable credentials, or integrate the functionality into the country’s existing flagship government app?
The government first considered a minimalist approach, which could provide important deployment benefits.
From a technical and architectural perspective, the choice was clear: launch a new app. The DPI principles that guide good architecture—like modularity and reusability—favor minimal building blocks.
A separate app:
- Is lighter and faster to build and deploy.
- Reduces dependencies on legacy systems.
- Keeps the solution “closer” to the core DPG, minimizing customizations that could break with future updates.
- Encourages experimentation and innovation.
- And perhaps most importantly, avoids bundling too many services into one place, which often leads to bloated, fragile systems that are hard to maintain or scale.
This minimalist approach sets the foundation for the long-term evolution of DPI, especially in governments with limited capacity to maintain highly customized solutions.
However, with user experience a top priority, implementers also had other options to consider.
From a UX perspective, the argument was flipped, as users already had a single, trusted government app where they expected to access all public services. Requiring them to download a second app, learn a new interface, and manage two accounts risked confusion and drop-off. For many, especially in lower-digital-literacy groups, every extra step is a point of friction and a potential point of exclusion.
One proposed compromise was to launch a separate app but use deep linking, a way to connect content and functionality across apps. This would allow the existing app to redirect users directly to specific features or screens in the new app, creating a more seamless experience. But even that required careful orchestration, and it still relied on users maintaining and navigating two apps.
The final decision balanced usability with local realities.
The team chose to integrate the new verifiable credentials functionality into their main app.
It wasn’t the simplest or fastest solution. But it was the right one for their context and users. And more importantly, it was the result of a thoughtful process:
- They worked with neutral advisors.
- They spoke with former policymakers who had faced similar decisions.
- They learned from what worked -and didn’t- in other countries.
- And they chose with awareness of the trade-offs.
This is a textbook case of good digital governance—not just deploying tech but navigating the realities of implementation and prioritizing the felt experience of people. The best policymakers know design choices are never perfect and still find ways to move forward. This case shows how: by working through real-world constraints, balancing competing priorities, and making thoughtful decisions without getting stuck.
As a digital public good, INJI was modular and adaptable, allowing it to meet the country’s bespoke needs.
While the feature was integrated, the solution remained modular at its core. INJI was built that way from the start, so governments could use the modules they needed as-is and adapt only the ones that didn’t work for their specific context. Of the four core INJI modules, the government customized only one.
That’s the power of modularity: it’s primarily a backend principle, not something users see. From a developer’s view, it allows for flexibility and future updates. But from a user’s view, it all feels seamless.
It’s like building with LEGO blocks—once everything is assembled, people don’t see the individual pieces anymore; they see the complete figure. That’s what this team achieved: a coherent, functional solution built from smaller, reusable parts.
Minimalism doesn’t have to mean launching separate apps. It means designing for adaptability, so governments can evolve their infrastructure without starting over. This approach keeps systems lighter, easier to maintain, and ready to grow.
This case demonstrates the power of thoughtful decision-making when implementing digital systems and solutions.
Stories like this aren’t just isolated case studies—they’re signs that Latin America and the Caribbean are learning how to build smarter, more resilient digital public infrastructure.
The more we grow a regional ecosystem that understands the most relevant open-source technologies for DPI, the stronger our foundation becomes. That means:
- More startups building new digital products and innovating on top of DPGs.
- More service providers equipped to integrate these technologies into existing systems.
- And more governments with access to a mature ecosystem—ready to implement, scale, adapt, and iterate.
This isn’t just about code. The real gaps in implementation are about capacity, context, and collaboration.
Closing those gaps starts by telling the stories of the teams doing the work—and learning from the choices they’ve made along the way. And, most importantly, by putting people at the center of digital transformation.
This is the second piece in a series of expert comments—and an upcoming white paper—meant to surface real-world insights from Latin America and the Caribbean on implementing open-source solutions for digital public infrastructure (DPI). It’s based on 15 interviews with policymakers, technologists, and implementers across the region who’ve lived these decisions. The goal: to uncover the actual gaps, tensions, and choices they’ve faced—in their own words.
