Ghana’s process for adding banking to its biometric card is a flawed one

Published: 26/Jan/2022
Source: Quartz Africa

By Tawanda Karombo

Ghana has moved to integrate telecommunications, banking, and mobile money platforms under the Ghana Card—a biometric means of personal identity—which will now be a prerequisite for all financial transactions starting July 1.

In a move that mirrors what is going on in other African countries such as Uganda and Zimbabwe pushing for biometric identity documents, including electronic passports, Ghana has gone a step further by officially requiring that mobile phone sim cards, mobile money, and banking accounts be linked and integrated into the Ghana Card. The Ghana Revenue Authority will also replace tax identification numbers to match the Ghana Card pin number starting March 31.

While the move has not been met with as much backlash in Ghana as similar biometric registration processes in other African countries, Ghanaians are concerned about the unrealistic timeline of having all mobile wallets and banking accounts integrated into the Ghana card by July 1st (pdf), in addition to privacy concerns and what is seen as a power play between various agencies.

Read further: https://qz.com/africa/2117872/ghana-card-being-linked-to-banking-is-frustrating-ghanaians/

Themes: ID Documents and Passports
Regions: Ghana
Year: 2022