The United Nations Capital Development Fund (UNCDF) is teaming up with Truepic, a California-based image authentication platform.

With this partnership, the UN agency seeks to use a new photo verification technology to support its development projects in some of the world’s poorest and most remote regions. The objective is to streamline and lower the monitoring, verification, and auditing costs of its projects.

Founded in 2016, Truepic has created a phone application that uses the blockchain to act as a digital notary for images. The company ensures the integrity of photos via a proprietary technology, available through a free phone app, which meets a legal standard for evidence.

“Truepic offers a unique product that can verify the authenticity of images, which can act as a public good and have important development value for a range of applications,” said UNCDF Executive Secretary Judith Karl. “UNCDF uses multiples sources of evidence, including photos, to monitor, track, and document our development work in the world’s poorest countries. We are excited to partner with Truepic to test its technology to support the transparency and accountability of our work in infrastructure development and financial inclusion.”

The startup is backed by leading investors and advisors and recently raised $8 million in a Series A round, which brought the total funding till date to $10.5 million.

“Digital image authentication can offer a critical cost savings, efficiency, and trust tool for a variety of industries, including international development. We are honored to partner with UNCDF and support its efforts to provide transformative instruments and financing to small businesses and communities in the world’s poorest countries,” said Craig Stack, Founder and COO, Truepic.