By Francis Ntow
Washington DC (USA), Oct 25 – Ghana’s Finance Minister, Dr Mohammed Amin Adam has asked the World Bank to provide financial assurances to attract investment into building stronger digital payment systems in Africa.
This, he said, would help to support the continents existing Pan African Payment and Settlement System (PAPPS) to facilitate the implementation of the African Continental Free Trade Area (AfCFTA) pact.
“We encourage a strategic deployment of guarantees and other financing mechanisms to mitigate risks and attract private capital to bolster existing payment systems and support the development of cost-effective cross-border transactions, interoperability, and data analytics,” he said.
He said this at the African Caucus meeting with the World Bank Group (WBG) President, Ajay Banga, on the margins of the 2024 Annual Meetings of the International Monetary Fund (IMF)/WBG, in Washington DC (USA).
He encouraged African governments to also scaleup innovative investments in quality Information and Communication Technology (ICT) infrastructure, including blockchain technology and Artificial Intelligence (AI).
Together with digital technology literacy and digital financial platforms, the Minister said would enable universal access to financial services for all Africans and increase intra-African trade.
He said PAPSS has been identified as an effective and unified intra-continental payment system for the realisation of the intra-African trade, which would stimulate economic growth, job creation and reduce poverty.
“We recognise that financial inclusion and harmonised trade routes are necessary to ensure an inclusive AfCFTA implementation, leaving no country or individual behind,” the Finance Minister said.
Dr Amin Adam also called for technical assistance to enhance security protocols and cybersecurity measures to prevent fraud, money laundering and other related cyber threats, and build institutional capacities across the continent.
He noted that doing so would ensure that the continent had a resilient and robust payment system to increase intra-continental trade, with its attendant benefits to businesses and individuals across the world.
He encouraged the World Bank to engage with the regional financial intermediaries of the African Caucus to analyse the gaps in the continental payment systems and promote a roadmap for the integration such systems.
He pledged Ghana’s commitment to helping to overcome all the challenges surrounding the programme through a collaborative effort with the IMF and the World Bank.
GNA