THE DAWN OF E-ZWICH IN GHANA AND THE ‘BAWUMIA-DYNAMICS’
Fellow Ghanaians, for some time now, my sleep has been highly compressed as I have been digging very deep for this piece. I wouldn’t want to bombard you with somewhat a long write-up, hence I ‘KISS’ it – an acronym in journalism that means Keep It Short and Simple.
‘Uncle, please what’s this card and what is it used for? A question my niece who aspires to be a lawyer asked me barely a week ago. ‘My Lord, please this is an E-Zwich biometric card I requested from Access Bank, through which I receive my monthly NSS allowance, I answered in a rusty voice as if I were a shuddering Aseidu Nketia in the witness box, as I was ill-prepared for further questions about the E-Zwich switch biometric card.
Many young ones like myself will equally be found wanting if they are one or the other way asked about the E-Zwich biometric card. Going through the internet to furnish myself, I found quite some worth sharing info which I would gladly not keep to myself.
The advent of E-Zwich in Ghana cannot be discussed without the Bawumia factor as part of his vision to digitalize and ensure financial system inclusion in Ghana.
According to the Ghana Interbank Payment and Settlement Systems Limited (GhIPSS), ‘the E-Zwich card is an interoperable biometric smart card payment system which connects all financial institutions in Ghana; allowing e-which cardholders to perform banking and retail transactions at the outlets of other e-which financial institutions.
As popularly known by National Service Personnel (NPS) nationwide, the E-Zwich card was an initiative of the GhIPPS and the Bank of Ghana (BoG). In 2007, Dr Bawumia led the introduction of the GHIPSS, a fully owned subsidiary of the Bank of Ghana, while in charge of the BOG’s digital initiatives. Indeed, aiming to develop and oversee an interoperable payment system infrastructure for Ghana’s banks and non-bank financial institutions, GhIPPS was established in May 2007.
Fast forward to August 2019, the Vice President, Dr Mahamudu Bawumia directed all public sector workers who drew their salaries from the Consolidated Fund to be issued with E-Zwich cards if they did not have them, this was to ensure that there were no phantom employees on the whole public sector payroll, a statement that caught the fancy of almost every concerned Ghanaian.
This is a testament to the vision, competence, and dedication to Dr Mahamudu Bawumia’s progressive agenda for the nation. Given the opportunity, he will do more for the country as President.