The Vice President of the Republic of Ghana, Dr. Mahamudu Bawumia has indicated that Mobile Money (MoMo) transactions have risen to nearly 2 trillion Ghana cedis since the New Patriotic Party (NPP) assumed office in 2017.
Speaking at the 2024 International Youth Day celebration at the Pentecost Convention Centre, Dr Bawumia said MoMo transactions have increased from 78 billion to 1.9 trillion Ghana cedis through the operationalization of Mobile Money Interoperability (MMI).
“When we came into office, Mobile Money transactions, total was 78 billion; today, it is 1.9 trillion Ghana cedis annual transaction. So we have done a major thing,” Dr. Bawumia said.
He said that through the MMI, many of the unbanked have been banked and almost 90% of adults operate MoMo accounts.
“What it means is that it has brought in so many people, about close to 85 to 90 per cent of adults into the financial system, financial inclusion. That is what the interoperability has done,” the Vice President said.
Dr Bawumia said Ghana had been the first country in Africa to operationalize MoMo Interoperability and has kept the lead as the largest MoMo market across Africa.
“And Ghana is the first country in Africa to have completed the Mobile Money Interoperability. We are the first, and that is why for the last few years, Ghana continues to be the fastest-growing mobile money market in the whole of Africa,” he said.
He noted that the MMI has improved financial inclusion and made financial transactions as people no longer need to visit their banks to send or withdraw money.
“In fact, most people don’t even go to their banks any more, they can do all the transactions on their mobile phones. The bank branches are no longer crowded, most people have not seen their bank branch in years, they just sit down and move money on their mobile phone,” he stated.
Dr Bawumia indicated that the operationalization of the MMI became necessary to allow transaction money seamlessly from one Telecos to the other as well as inter- and intra-bank transactions.
He said many Ghanaians at the time had MoMo accounts but could transact money across networks and within banks.
“And so, first of all, when we came into office, you couldn’t transfer money between MTN and Vodafone, at the time, or Vodafone and Airtel; they were not interoperable. You couldn’t move money between a bank account and a MoMo account.
“And so, we decided that we will do Mobile Money Interoperability to make sure you could move money between a bank account and MoMo account and from one Telco to the other.
”It had never been done in Africa and we said it was possible. And so, we started the process and we have completed the process,” Dr. Bawumia said.
The Vice President who is also running for the Office of President under the ticket of the governing New Patriotic Party (NPP) has been a staunch advocate and champion for digitalization of government services and the Ghanaian economy including MoMo Interoperability.
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