THE Governor of the Central Bank of Nigeria (CBN), Olayemi Cardoso, has launched two policy initiatives – the document flow (DocFlow) system and the ministries, departments, and agencies (MDAs) naira payment solution.
In a statement issued by the apex bank on Thursday, December 16, the launch was held at the CBN headquarters in Abuja on Wednesday, December 15, and is a continuation of the bank’s digital revolution project tagged “Digital First” which was flagged off by the Governor in December 2023 as one of his transformation initiatives.
Cardoso, at the launch, explained in the statement that the DocFlow system is a
solution designed to revolutionise the bank’s document management processes by digitising documentation, minimising paper usage, and streamlining the approval processes.
He emphasised the significance of the MDAs Naira Payment Solution, which automates the cash withdrawal process for MDAs, enhancing efficiency in financial transactions and strengthening client support.
Cardoso pledged his commitment to all initiatives of the Bank which aims to enhance service delivery, improve operational efficiency, and foster sustainability through technological advancements and expressed delight that the two solutions were fully developed in-house, thus saving a lot of costs.
Also speaking at the event, the deputy governor, operations, Emem Usoro stated
that the launch of the solutions demonstrated the Bank’s desire for operational
excellence through process automation and creating a culture of innovation that
prioritises stakeholders’ satisfaction.
She further highlighted the benefit of the MDAs naira payment solution to include improved service delivery to the MDAs, while minimising errors, irregularities and mitigating against fraud.
In her remarks, the project lead and acting director of CBN’s Information Technology Department, Jide-Samuel, disclosed that the MDA Cash Payment Solution has been successfully tested with some MDAs and aligns with the Bank’s enterprise objective of, “Excellence in Central Banking Operations”.
The ICIR reports that the MDAs naira payment solution is considered a game-changer in the CBN’s financial transaction management. It is also projected to cause a 70 per cent improvement in payment turnaround time and further improves Nigeria’s financial ecosystem.
The ICIR has reported that CBN recorded 190 per cent improvement on digital transactions of the e-Naira since the system was launched in October 2021.
The apex bank expressed its commitment to build on the recorded successes to grow transactions on digital economy, while encouraging more Nigerians to embrace the platform.
The ICIR reports that Nigeria’s fintech sector has grown exponentially in recent years, driven by both consumer demand and advancements in technology.
According to the Nigeria Inter-Bank Settlement System (NIBSS),the electronic payment transactions in Nigeria hit an all-time high in 2023 as it rose by 55 per cent to N600 trillion, compared to N387 trillion in 2022.
NIBSS data also showed that the total value of point of sale (PoS) transactions for 2023 was N10.73 trillion compared to N8.39 trillion recorded in 2022 indicating a 27.85 per cent increase.
Harrison Edeh is a journalist with the International Centre for Investigative Reporting, always determined to drive advocacy for good governance through holding public officials and businesses accountable.