# Proven tools from successful states

> The digital tools that let successful states serve millions of people cheaply are proven, published and free to copy.

Source page: https://calankii.com/en/forces/proven-tools-from-successful-states/
Last checked: 2026-11-12
Publisher: Calankii (https://calankii.com)

## The force

A new state no longer has to invent its systems. Other countries have built them, tested them on millions of people and, in several cases, released them for anyone to use.

## The tools

- **India, UPI (instant payments).** Any bank account can pay any other by phone, instantly. It handled 21.7 billion transactions in January 2026 ([Government of India, PIB](https://static.pib.gov.in/WriteReadData/specificdocs/documents/2026/mar/doc202636812701.pdf)).
- **India, Aadhaar (ID) and direct payments.** More than 1.44 billion IDs had been issued by March 2026. Benefits go straight into people's accounts, and removing fake names saved more than ₹4.31 lakh crore from 2015 to 2024 ([PIB](https://static.pib.gov.in/WriteReadData/specificdocs/documents/2026/mar/doc202636812701.pdf)).
- **India, DigiLocker.** Official documents kept on the phone: 676 million users and more than 9.5 billion documents ([PIB](https://static.pib.gov.in/WriteReadData/specificdocs/documents/2026/mar/doc202636812701.pdf)).
- **Estonia, X-Road.** Free software that links government databases so people give their information only once. It runs more than 3,800 e-services and about 2.2 billion transactions a year, and other countries use it too ([e-Estonia](https://e-estonia.com/solutions/interoperability-services/x-road/)).
- **Rwanda, health data by SMS.** Community health workers report by text message into one national database. They had sent more than 9.3 million messages by 2018, and more than 700 health facilities were linked in one system ([Exemplars in Global Health](https://www.exemplars.health/topics/primary-health-care/rwanda/pathway-2-how-did-rwanda-foster-a-culture-of-accountability-and-information-use)).
- **Rwanda, performance contracts.** From 2006, officials signed public targets and were measured against them (same source).

## Inside the country

Somalia already has the base these tools need. About 73% of adults use mobile money ([IMF](https://www.imf.org/-/media/files/publications/cr/2024/english/1somea2024001.pdf.md)). A national instant payment system with one QR standard went live in 2025 ([BPC](https://www.bpcbt.com/en/press/somalia-launches-first-nationwide-instant-payment-system-powered-by-bpc)). National ID registration began in August 2025, aiming at 15 million people by 2029, and the Hubiye identity check links every commercial bank ([World Bank](https://blogs.worldbank.org/en/nasikiliza/federal-republic-of-somalia-launches-mass-registration-drive-for-its-digital-id)).

## What to watch

Tools are only as good as the people running them. Researchers warn that when AI is used in government, it can be unclear who is accountable when it gets something wrong ([CEPA](https://cepa.org/article/should-ai-chatbots-provide-government-services/)). Data must be protected.

## What it means for young Somalis

Young Somalis can learn and adapt tools that already serve more than a billion people, rather than starting from nothing. A small skilled team can do what once took thousands of clerks.

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