The Nation Newspaper

Tag: Biometric registration

  • Bankers’ Committee backs biometric registration

    Bankers’ Committee backs biometric registration

    Bankers’ Committee is supporting banks’ continuous enrolment of their customers on the Bank Verification Number (BVN). BVN involves the registration of customers in the financial system using biometric technology, thereby making accounts more secure using unique identifiers such as fingerprint.

    The BVN is an initiative aimed at protecting bank customers and further strengthening the Nigerian banking system. It is an initiative of the Central Bank of Nigeria (CBN), in conjunction with the Bankers’ Committee meant to address the safety of customers’ funds, avoid losses through compromise of personal identification numbers and other criminal activities in the industry.

    The BVN  also encourages financial inclusion as those who have typically stayed away from mainstream banking due to low literacy levels will be able to open and access their bank accounts using their biometric information rather than traditional identification methods.

    The BVN has been described as a ‘silver-bullet solution’ to many of the challenges in the banking industry. The BVN is a unique identifier for each bank customer across the financial industry, making it possible to build and track customer financial history and activity. This will allow banks access to more reliable information that could inform decisions on customer loan and credit applications and other complex transactions. In addition, banks are also now able to reduce identity fraud within the financial industry and increase accountability levels.

  • Biometric registration of bank customers starts in Lagos

    Biometric registration of bank customers starts in Lagos

    The $50 million Biometric Solution project instituted by the Central Bank of Nigeria (CBN) and the Bankers’ Committee kicked off yesterday in Lagos.

    The exercise, which would provide central database for all bank customers across the country, was launched by the CBN Governor, Sanusi Lamido Sanusi.

    Speaking during the launching of the project, Sanusi said the innovation remains a milestone in the Nigerian payment system and would be completed in the next 18 months. He explained that henceforth, Automated Teller Machines (ATMs) and Point of Sale (PoS) machines will be biometric-based and would help fix identity challenges facing the banking system.

    He said the project will be a game changer for financial inclusion and address issues relating to unified identity for bank customers.

    Sanusi said the CBN, the Nigerian Communications Satellite (NICOMSAT) and MainOne is working out modalities that would provide Internet facilities in the 774 Local Government Areas (LGAs) across the country. He said the CBN Board is working on harmonising budget for the project, adding that the guideline would require the apex bank to pay for the services in the next three to four years.

    Sanusi noted that the biometric project, which was the culmination of a two-year long screening exercise, was not in any way incompatible with the Federal Government’s National Identity Card project.

    Chairman, Bankers’ Committee Sub-Committee on Biometrics, Godwin Emefiele, said the project remains ambitious and would revolutionalise the banking system.

    Emefiele, who is the Group Managing Director, Zenith Bank, said the project will lead to re-setting of credit standard in the banking sector, as well as enhance consumer credit.

    “It is a rare opportunity that needed to be embraced. This project has capacity to serve over 160 million people. The good thing is that even when one forgets his/her Personal Identification Number (PIN), once the information is verified, transactions can be done,” he said.

    The Managing Director, Nigeria Interbank Settlement System (NIBSS), Ade Shonobi, said the biometric solution is needed to bring sanity to the Nigerian payment system, adding that an effective payment system is key in building the economy.

    Managing Director, Dermalog, Gunther Mull, said the company, which is handing the biometric project, is both financially and technically competent to carry out its job. He refuted claims that the company is bankrupt, adding that it has been profitable, growing at over 15 per cent in the last 12 years.

  • Biometric registration of staff a must, say hotel owners

    The Hotel Owners and Forum Abuja (HOFA), has said there is no going back on the recent decision by the Nigerian Tourism Development Corporation (NTDC) that biometric registration be conducted on hotel workers across the country.

    Reacting to a rejection statement credited to hotel employees under the National Union of Hotels and Personnel Services Workers, HOFA said the NTDC consulted with all the stakeholders in the business.

    In a statement signed by its President, Onofiok Ekong, and Secretary, David Alozie, HOFA said the biometric registration is desirable and imperative.

    The statement said: “We have read with utter dismay in some national dailies the position of a section of hotel workers under the aegis of National Union of Hotels and Personnel Services Workers rejecting the laudable proposed biometric registration of hotel workers across the country by the NTDC.

    “As owners of hotels and hospitality establishments, we held several meetings with the NTDC as stakeholders under Hotel Owners and Hotel Forum of Abuja (HOFA) along with other stakeholders including Hotel Personnel Staff Employee Association (HOPSEA).

    “Arising from these meetings, we collectively resolved that the biometric registration of hotel workers for security and staff tracking purposes was not only urgently desirable but also imperative.

    “We wish to sound it loud and clear that as investors, we must protect our investments in which huge capital resources have been committed. It is also on the basis of this that introducing biometric registration of workers would enable us curb and eventually stamp out rampant cases of fraud and criminal activities among the workers. We cannot allow this ugly trend to continue unabated.

    “We, therefore, reiterate our position that as hotel owners, we are behind the good initiative of the NTDC to embark on the biometric registration throughout the country”.

  • Biometric registration for hotels to commence soon

    The Nigerian Tourism Development Corporation (NTDC) with other stakeholders in the tourism and hospitality industry will soon sign a formal agreement on biometric registration of hotels and other hospitality outfits with Orbit Technologies and Investment Limited.

    Described as first of its kind in the hospitality industry in West Africa, the Director-General of the NTDC, Otunba Runsewe, said in the statement that security of hotel operation was a priority to the corporation.

    He said when operational, biometric registration of workers would help in detecting fraudulent staff who may be changing jobs within the industry.

    “It is also to protect the investment of hoteliers who could fall victim of dubious employees,” Otunba Runsewe stressed.

    It will be recalled that hoteliers nationwide have been sensitised about the biometric registration of their workers with all of them lending an overwhelming support to its introduction.

    Meanwhile, Otunba Runsewe has invited strategic partners to key into the annual Carnival Calabar.

    Otunba Runsewe gave the invitation while attending the 2012 edition of the event held at the Cross River State capital in December just as he commended the organizers of the fiesta on its wonderful outing last year.

    Otunba Runsewe, who personally attended the festival with the leading American travel expert, Mr.Paul Cohen, and others from Botswana, was impressed by the huge turnout of both indigenes and visitors to all the events in the 32-day festival.

    The NTDC DG, who flagged off the golf event, was at the airport to receive the Brazillian Samba band and commended the state for internationalizing the event, bringing diverse and international flavour to a Nigerian spectacle.

    On a courtesy call on the acting Governor, Otunba Runsewe commended the hard work that went into putting together such a world-class event and promised more support as the event grows internationally.

    Stressing the importance of tourism in wealth and job creation, he was all praises for the billions of naira generated over the 32 days, quoting figures of over 4000 rooms all occupied night after night and crime figures at its lowest ever. With the 500, 000 viewing public in 2011, he stressed that the edition would have passed the million viewers mark on the carnival day.

    According to Runsewe, the NTDC is happy that its support of the Calabar event is yielding results and used the opportunity to call on other states to work with it in properly packaging and promoting their events to attract tourists as Cross River State seems to be doing.

    The DG also implored Cross River State to ignore detractors who do not see good in tourism progress in Nigeria as there are people ever ready to engender make-believe strife in tourism, citing the numerous attacks against him and the NTDC as a good example of what it takes to do a good job in Nigeria, assuring them of his support.