The Vice President of the Republic of Ghana and Flagbearer of the New Patriotic Party (NPP), H.E. Alhaji Dr. Mahamudu Bawumia, has on Friday July 5, 2024 proposed for Africa to have a continental mobile money interoperability, in his address as the keynote speaker for the opening session of the Africa Prosperity Network Conference in Accra.
“Trade payments and relationships are currently hampered by inadequate settlement systems, which result in high costs, limited access, slow processing speeds, and a lack of transparency”… “Making mobile money interoperable across borders would allow our citizens to trade seamlessly”, he said.
Dr. Bawumia further noted that, as a continent we should attempt to pursue this incrementally, which does not imply that West African Monetary Zone countries pursue unattainable macroeconomic convergence requirements, but rather apply digital payments convergence standards. Adding that only a few countries, such as Ghana, Nigeria, and Côte d’Ivoire, may begin, and we can proceed gradually.
This year’s theme underscores Ghana’s leadership position in securing triangular mobile money interoperability, which enables seamless financial transactions between telecoms, bank accounts, and e-zwich platforms. Ghana’s effective deployment of comprehensive mobile money interoperability, which is unique on the continent, will come in useful as other African countries attempt to follow suit.