Federal Government Moves To Fix Digital Payment Glitches, Boost e-Commerce

The Federal Government said it was moving towards removing each glitches against seamless integer payments and e-commerce crossed the country.

The effort being spearheaded by the Office of the Vice President done the Ministry of Industry, Trade and Investment, and improvement partners was to guarantee citizens seamlessly transportation wealth utilizing their mobile phones and different devices.

Deputy Chief of Staff to the President successful the Office of the Vice President, Senator Ibrahim Hassan Hadejia, disclosed this successful Abuja connected Tuesday during a stakeholders’ roundtable.

According to a connection by Stanley Nkwocha, the spokesperson of the vice president, Senator Hadejia reiterated the resoluteness by the medication of President Bola Tinubu to thrust fiscal inclusion, utilizing antithetic strategies for antithetic integer outgo infrastructure that fundamentally scope the past mile and service the financially excluded.

According to him, determination were precise fewer countries successful the West that person the benignant of easiness of outgo and banking disposable successful Nigeria.

“It doesn’t hap anyplace successful the world, and by the clip we statesman to code this issues, we tin usage that scope to participate into the e-commerce stage. And similar I said, from our ain perspective, we are besides disquieted astir the exclusion that is inherent truthful that eligible Nigerians, nary substance wherever they are, tin person entree to quality, elemental fiscal services that are beyond acquisition and poorness levels,” helium said.

He added that the Office of the Vice President was looking astatine integer outgo and individuality arsenic the past stumbling artifact successful opening up e-commerce successful Nigeria.

“We are driving fiscal inclusion successful the Office of the Vice President, which has to bash with the strategy for antithetic integer outgo infrastructure that would fundamentally scope the past mile and service the financially excluded.”

Resolving these, helium noted volition magnitude to sidesplitting respective birds with 1 stone,” Hadejia said.

He assured that by the clip authorities marque outgo seamless, compartment telephone users would beryllium capable to person and marque outgo easily.

Hadejia continued: “You person a concern where, successful a fewer years, the magnitude oregon measurement of transaction from integer platforms is successful excess of the accepted recognition card. So, you person the likes of Wizard and Mastercard taking an interest, jumping into this space.

“And, of course, to besides place wherefore the African Free Continental Trade Agreement has simply refused to summation the traction that it should person respective years aft it was established.

“We tin besides constituent to the information that the issues person to bash perchance with the cross-border outgo and the individuality issue. We are hoping that discussions similar this volition connection solutions,” helium said.

Earlier, the Principal Research Fellow, International Economic Development Group, Dr Max Mendez-Parra, ODI Global said the organisation had been moving with the African Continental Free Trade Secretariat and different African countries connected Digital Trade connected a wide scope of coordination of the negotiations of integer commercialized protocol.

Mendez-Parra explained that the implementation of the AFCTA is transformative for the African economy, particularly connected the Nigerian economy, adding that the ODI was assisting authorities and AFCTA Secretariat successful Accra connected antithetic aspects associated with the AFCTA.

“In particular, we are supporting the negotiations and implementation of the concern protocol and the integer commercialized protocol arsenic well. So, we person been moving with the AFCTA. And this is what has brought america to Nigeria.

“Already, this is our 4th twelvemonth that we person been here, and we are teaming up with the Office of the Vice President to fundamentally heighten antithetic aspects associated with the implementation of the Digital commercialized protocol successful Nigeria,” helium said.

Also, the Minister of Industry, Trade and Investment, Dr Jumoke Oduwole said the ministry and the AFCTA secretariat successful Accra had travel up with an inaugural called the AFCTA DG walk to operationalize the integer identities.

Oduwole, who was represented by her Special Adviser, Patience Okala, explained that the inaugural was inactive astatine its babe stage, expressing anticipation that the conversations astatine the roundtable, arsenic good arsenic the concerns raised could capable into the process.

For his part, Special Assistant to the President connected ICT Policy, Mallam Salisu Nakande said the task came into airy 2 years ago, with the enactment of the Vice President Kashim Shettima.

“We judge that arsenic overmuch arsenic Nigerians privation to trade, they request to beryllium capable to marque payments successful a seamless mode crossed board, and determination is simply a batch of system to pat successful there. So, that is the basal for this conversation,” helium said.