T&I Birds of a Feather (BoF)

Tuesday 24 Mar 2026, 18:30 → 20:35 Africa/Banjul

ICC, Banjul

Omo Oaiya (WACREN)

The Trust & Identity Birds of a Feather (BoF) session, co-located with the WACREN 2026 Conference in Banjul, is a small, practitioner-focused working discussion for professionals directly involved in identity, federation, and eduroam operations across the research and education community.

Rather than a formal presentation session, this BoF is designed as an interactive peer exchange where participants can openly discuss operational experiences, challenges, and practical approaches to deploying and operating trust and identity services within NRENs and connected institutions.

The discussion will focus on current challenges facing the WACREN region, including:

• Identity Provider operations and institutional onboarding
• Federation participation and alignment with eduGAIN
• Identity readiness for eduroam and geteduroam deployments
• Operational considerations around Identity Provider as a Service (IdPaaS)
• Trust, governance, and production-grade identity services
   

The session will be facilitated through short framing prompts followed by open discussion among participants, with the aim of capturing practitioner perspectives that can inform the evolution of trust and identity services in the region.

Participation is limited and intended primarily for practitioners across the WACREN community, including:

• NREN identity and federation leads
• Campus IAM and network operators
• eduroam and geteduroam practitioners
• Engineers responsible for operating identity infrastructure
   

This session prioritises practical experience and candid discussion to strengthen coordination and shared understanding across the WACREN trust and identity community.

The discussion will also help surface operational priorities and practitioner input to inform the evolution of WACREN’s trust and identity roadmap.

18:30 → 18:40 Welcome and Session Framing

Welcome and introductions
Purpose of the BoF and expected outcomes
Format and discussion principles (interactive, practitioner-focused, no presentations)

18:40 → 18:50 Quick Participant Round

Participants briefly introduce:
Name and organisation
Role in identity / federation / eduroam
One current challenge or question they are facing

18:50 → 19:20 Discussion Block 1 – Identity Provider Operations

Focus topics:
Institutional readiness to operate IdPs
Federation participation and eduGAIN alignment
Attribute quality and assurance challenges
SAML and emerging OIDC considerations

Guiding question:
What are the main barriers institutions face in operating reliable federation-ready identity services?

19:20 → 19:50 Discussion Block 2 – Identity Provider as a Service (IdPaaS)

Focus topics:
Can IdPaaS help institutions participate in federation?
Where are the trust and governance boundaries?
Risks of centralisation vs institutional autonomy
Operational and policy implications for NRENs

Guiding question:
In which scenarios does IdPaaS solve real problems, and where might it create new ones?

19:50 → 20:10 Discussion Block 3 – eduroam / geteduroam Enablement

Focus topics:
Identity readiness for eduroam deployment
Certificate and onboarding challenges
RADIUS / RadSec operational considerations
Lessons from successful deployments

Guiding question:
What are the most common blockers preventing institutions from joining eduroam?

20:10 → 20:25 Synthesis – Key Takeaways and Next Steps

20:25 → 20:30 Closing and Informal Networking

Final reflections
Opportunities for follow-up collaboration
Continuation of discussions during the conference