MICROCAPITAL BRIEF: Government of Ghana Budgets $10m to Support Ghana Interbank Payment and Settlement System (GHIPSS) to Reach Rural Customers Through "E-Zwich" Biometric Identification System

The government of Ghana has budgeted EUR 7.5 million (USD 10.6 million) to support the Ghana Interbank Payment and Settlement System (GHIPSS) in an effort to ensure high-quality delivery of financial services and to better serve the under-banked population of Ghana. Ghana's Finance Minister, Dr Kwabena Duffuor, has been quoted as stating “the funds would allow GHIPSS to implement a countrywide biometric system as well as undertake a rural banking project that uses the National Switch and Smart card payment system, branded as e-zwich…This technology will permit offline transaction and fingerprint recognition making it highly suitable for rural areas and for the uneducated people in our country” [1]. Goals regarding the number of people to be reached and schedule of the project have...