Daily Independent (Lagos)
David Agba
17 June 2009
Federal Government on Tuesday warned banks, Ministries, Departments and Agencies (MDAs) against breaching its policy on e-payment.
The Government therefore charged all commercial banks to dishonour any cheque instrument drawn by the MDAs.
According to a statement signed by Oluyinka Akintunde, Special Assistant to the Minister of State for Finance, Remi Babalola, in
Abuja, this was disclosed in Lagos at the ninth edition of the annual international conference and exhibition on cards and allied technologies tagged Card Expo Africa 2009.
The Minister, the statement explained was represented by his Special Assistant (Technical), Felix Ogbera.
He said all Federal Government transactions requiring huge payments were required to be done electronically to the beneficiary's account and not with cash or cheque instruments.
"In this regards, all commercial banks have also been directed to dishonour any cheque instrument drawn by MDAs from January 1, 2009, because they (MDAs) have since been warned to desist from the practice," he said.
The Federal Government, through the Central Bank of Nigeria, had in January 2009 issued a policy that all government payments must be done electronically.
The policy was adopted by the government as part of measures to enhance accountability and transparency and to check corruption.
Babalola noted that an effective oversight of the payments system landscape was crucial to achieving an efficient, safe, reliable and dependable system.
"The Federal Government is aware of the enormous requirements for effective implementation of the payment system and fully committed to providing the right policy and the enabling environment for the system to grow and thrive.
"At the same time, experts in information technology and the financial sector must endeavour to find solutions to some of the serious challenges that had arisen from the usage of the electronic payment system in the country.
"Without question, the issue of data security is very important and efforts must be made by the experts to come up with a very formidable application to secure the data in the system to avoid fraud and build confidence in the payment platforms," he advised.
He however assured that the government would continue to strengthen the financial reporting system, the computerisation of accounts and the electronic payment system in all MDAs.
According to him, accurate and adequate financial records are essential for Nigeria to meet its development needs as well as manage state resources and revenue effectively.
This year's CardExpo Africa Conference is aimed at developing a road map for ensuring that the different e-payment delivery channels are in focus and approached methodically in order to tap into the enormous potentials which lie in information technology.
The road map has become imperative not just for social development but as a way of preparing Nigerians and the economy for the challenges of the 21st century global market.
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