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Tag: biometric

  • FG to implement ECOWAS biometric identity card

    The Minister of Interior, Lt.- Gen. Abdulrahman Dambazau (retd), said Federal Government would implement the use of Economic Community of West African States (ECOWAS) biometric identity card.

    He noted that it was part of efforts of the government to curb influx of foreigners into the country.

    Dambazau made this known on Thursday when participants of Executive Intelligence Management Course (EIMC) 12 of Institute for Security Studies (ISS), Bwari, Abuja, visited him.

    The ministry may sign a Concession Agreement on the Implementation of the ECOWAS Biometric Identity Card with Euphoria Press Limited on Friday.

    READ ALSO: Heritage Bank launches biometric identity card for PMAN

    The minister explained that ECOWAS Free movement protocol would be accompanied by passports and proper documentation.

    He said the action plan of every country in ECOWAS would be presented “and we will ensure to work with it.

    “We will ensure that we implement the ECOWAS Biometric Identity Card in Nigeria. We will launch it three Months after the signing.’’

    He said that the biometric identity card was a prominent feature in the last ECOWAS Summit in December, 2018 in Abuja.

    According to him, nobody can cross our border without the ECOWAS identity card; these are some of the security arrangements Nigeria is making to address border security issues.

    Danbazau noted that border security was a challenge, adding that Nigerian Immigration Service was responsible for manning the nation’s borders and monitoring movement of people.

    “We had to build a good intelligence gathering system so that we can have a good information. This will build our capacity to monitor and respond to these issues,’’ he said.

    He added that Nigeria also shared intelligence with neighbouring countries, saying “we are also partnering other countries, especially our strategic neighbours and other European countries and international organisations.

    “We are installing a system called Midas to help improve on capacity to monitor our borders, and because of the insurgency in the North-East, we had to partner Nigerian Air Force and build their capacity.’’

    He said that Nigeria had provided a number of vehicles for patrol and had established a number of patrol bases across strategic border-States.

    Earlier the Director of ISS, Mr Ayodele Adeleke, who led the delegation, said that the team was on a visit to understudy the operations of the ministry.

    He raised concerns on internal security in Nigeria, stressing on the need to collaborate with neighbouring countries in addressing the issue.

    Adeleke noted that some youths had died in the Mediterranean, while some were stranded along the routes in attempts to move out of the country.

    He pointed out that International Migration had posed a lot of problems for Nigeria, adding that there was need for relevant agencies to collaborate to tackle the challenges.

    The delegation comprised personnel of the Navy, DSS, EFCC, NSCDC, Police and paramilitary organisations.

    NAN

  • Edo APC to begin biometric registration of members

    Edo APC to begin biometric registration of members

    The Edo State chapter of the All Progressives Congress (APC) has indicated that it would soon commence the biometric registration of its members across the 192 wards.

    It said the decision to do a biometric registration of its members was reached after an enlarged meeting of the state Working Committee with local government party chairmen.

    Its Publicity Secretary, Mr. Chris Azebamwan, who stated this at a media briefing, said the registration would help to strengthen the membership base of the party ahead of the 2019 general elections.

    Azebamwan said the initiative would help to boost the party’s membership drive, as members of the public would have the opportunity to join and contribute their quota towards the development of the APC.

    He said: “All matters relating to indiscipline within the rank and file in the party have been resolved and closed.”

    The Publicity Secretary said the party has successfully monitored its  performance index in the state ahead of future polls.

    He said the party has established a feedback mechanism through the engagement of 192 Special Assistants to Governor Godwin Obaseki.

  • Biometric-fatigue?

    Biometric-fatigue?

    •BVN should be open-ended, but it is imperative that every account holder is captured by the present window

    With less than 40 percent registered barely a month to go, it seems all is far from well with the apex bank-ordered current Biometric Verification Number (BVN) registration exercise.

    Giving an update last week, the Central Bank of Nigeria (CBN) Director, Corporate Communications, Mu’azu Ibrahim, disclosed that only 20 million out of the 52 million active bank accounts in the country have registered. That is a whopping 32 million yet to acquire the BVN as at the end of September. For the 20 million already enrolled, the CBN spokesman further observed that 14 million are linked to the BVN as at September.

    For  an exercise launched with so much fanfare on February 14, 2014, and which was initially planned to end by June 30 this year, it must be disappointing that the shift in the deadline, by four months, did little to change the situation. We wonder if this is not by itself a measure of how biometric-weary Nigerians have become.

    Today, all manners of agencies – public and private – are known to mount the siege on the citizens for the same biometric information, while hyping the same grand claims about delivering fool-proof identification systems. Yet, what we have seen over the years are miserably poor outcomes, after expending enormous resources – in cash and productive man-hours.

    Given the current level of compliance, it seems highly unlikely that the October 31 deadline will be met. And if experience is anything to go by, Nigerians can expect to see chaos and bedlam in the coming weeks, as customers besiege the banking halls to beat the deadline.  A further extension of the deadline would therefore, in the circumstance, seem absolutely imperative.

    The latest development obviously throws up a number of salient issues. First, has the apex bank – as indeed the Bankers Committee as a whole – done enough to create the awareness required for its success?  The second point is whether the Bankers Committee couldn’t have come with a better, less disruptive way to get the job done; and third, whether the idea of the deadline, and the threat of sanctions for failure, make any sense at all.

    On the first, we agree that there is a lot to be said of Nigerians’ penchant to dither on important issues such as the BVN registration. It is however the CBN’s primary responsibility to mount a matching public enlightenment response as well as a pragmatic programme to secure the needed buy-in for the exercise.

    Obviously, if the power to draw up deadlines or issue threats of sanctions (as against creating the right environment for its adoption) is all that is required to get the job done, the exercise would have long been concluded.

    Rather than seek to enforce impossible deadlines, therefore, the CBN, as indeed the Bankers Committee, would do well to focus on creating the right atmosphere to get more customers to sign up for the programme.

    On the second issue, we also think the CBN could have done better to develop a simpler, less cumbersome and less time-consuming process, or better still, a single platform to integrate the banks. A single platform would obviously save time and eliminate the additional burden imposed on multiple account owners.

    That should neither prove an impossible task given the current level of application of Information Technology in the sector, nor be considered too late given the foregoing circumstances.

    Finally, we see the idea of stopping the operations of accounts in the event of the failure to meet the registration deadline as stemming from the failure of imagination. Would the apex bank rather shut the offenders out as against finding creative means to sign them on to the BVN? Would that mean that only those signed on would enjoy banking services?

    The answers to these questions would have a great impact on the economy, since banking is at the core of every economic activity.  That is why the CBN must come out with a flexible BVN aimed at maximum compliance without a penalty regime that shrinks the banking market.

  • Biometric capturing of Abuja IDPs begins soon

    The Federal Capital Territory Administration (FCTA), under the FCT Emergency Management Agency (FEMA), will soon begin the biometric capturing of Internally Displaced Persons (IDPs) in the FCT.

    The exercise is to ensure that only genuine IDPs, who have been displaced by the insurgency in the Northeast, benefit from the relief materials provided by the administration.

    FEMA’s spokesperson Josie Mudasiru said the Director, Alhaji Abbas Idriss, made the statement at a media chat in Abuja.

    She said: “The FCT Emergency Management Agency, FEMA, in conjunction with its stakeholders, will begin the biometric capturing of the Internally Displaced Persons in the Federal Capital Territory.

    “The Director, FEMA, Alhaji  Idriss, said this in his office during a media chat. He said despite the huge expenditure towards providing relief for IDPS, there are still complaints from some quarters that the relief materials are not getting to them, hence the need for biometrics.

    “The biometrics data capturing exercise is meant to ensure that only genuine IDPs displaced by the insurgency in the Northeast benefit from the relief.

    “Caution is taken to ensure that the real IDPs get what they are entitled to.”

    Speaking on FEMA’s plan for this year, Idriss said the agency would focus on implementing the hazard mapping of the Federal Capital Territory, an effective early warning mechanism and emergency rescues.

    “The FEMA boss advised  FCT residents not to be disturbed at the presence of IDPs, as security agents are working to ensure that bad elements do not infiltrate the IDPs.

    “He assured residents of safety, as the agency shares information with the security agencies, who he said were part of the profiling exercises carried out on the IDPs by FEMA and NEMA.

    “Alhaji Idriss also advised residents to cooperate with emergency workers, by giving way to ambulances and other rescue vehicles.”

    on a rescue mission. He said this will help the agencies in saving lives and properties.”

  • Biometric database for customers takes off in March

    Biometric database for customers takes off in March

    Biometric database for bank customers will be ready by March next year. The project, which is the brainchild of the Central Bank of Nigeria and the Bankers’ Committee, is meant to have a central database where all bank customers’ information will be collated and stored. Since biometric identifiers are unique to individuals, they remain reliable in verifying identity of each bank customer.

    According to the CBN, the platform, when completed, would help operators and regulators of the financial system address issues of Know Your Customer (KYC), anti-money laundering (AML), and access to credit. This will help fast-track use of channels, such as biometric Automated Teller Machines (ATMs) and Point of Sale (PoS) terminals, among others.

    The CBN said it is also planning a Consumer Complaints Management System that will make it possible for it to monitor banks’ breaches in customers’ accounts. When completed, the platform will enable the regulator see which customer complaints are being treated, and which are not being considered. The CBN to, with the platform, see the complaints by bank customers and track the turnaround time of their resolution.

    It said the role of consumer protection is not limited to the CBN alone, but remains a collective responsibility of everyone. It said the Consumer Protection Unit of the CBN is mandated to educate consumers and defend their interest, detect money laundering and combat financial terrorism as well as enhance awareness on these issues. The apex bank is also reviewing the framework on consumer protection to ensure that all complaints by customers are promptly addressed.

    Also, where any of the cases is proved, the affected bank will be required to make necessary amends and where financial obligations are involved, will be required to refund the money. The measures are aimed at encouraging good banking habits and promoting efficiency in the delivery of financial services as well as boosting public confidence in the system.

  • CBN mulls biometric authentication of bank customers

    CBN mulls biometric authentication of bank customers

    The Central Bank of Nigeria (CBN) says it will introduce Biometric authentication of bank customers in 2015 using Point Of Sale (POS) and Automated Teller Machines (ATMs).

    The introduction of biometric authentication is to address the safety of customers’ funds and avoid losses through compromise of Personal Identification Numbers (PIN).

    This disclosure was made by the CBN governor Mallam Sanusi Lamido Sanusi at the stakeholders sensitisation on the cashless Nigeria programme for the Federal Capital Territory (FCT).

    Sanusi said: “Biometric authentication for POS and ATMs to address safety of customers’ funds and avoid losses through compromise of PIN is being considered and to be implemented by 2015.”

    Corroborating Sanusi, Chidi Onwealu who represented Eme Eleonu, Head, Shared Services, of the CBN said the financial industry cannot continue to wait forever as they will apply biometric authentication of bank customers.

    Onwealu said: “We have started a financial institutions biometric project. Right now we are capturing. The project has just started and very soon we’ll start capturing finger prints of all customers in the financial system.”

    This effort he said, will serve “as a first base to start enabling biometric options and by 2015 we expect that the illiterate trader in Onitsha and the illiterate trader in Kano would not have to come to your bank and you see his signature as irregular because those are the kind of things that stop them from opening accounts.”

    He berated banks for giving their customers cumbersome forms to fill. “They are not comfortable with that so they’ll rather have their money under their beds but as soon as we start applying biometric options, all they need is their finger prints to access their funds and so on.”

    The CBN governor represented by John Chukwudifu, the FCT branch controller, said the apex bank has taken great steps to gain the confidence of ATM consumers and as such has been able to reduce fraud committed with electronic cards by 90 per cent.

    To gain ATM users confidence, the CBN, Sanusi said, had to enforce migration from Magstripe type of debit card to chip and pin (EMV compliance) type of debit card.

    As a result of this effort, statistics he said, “shows that this effort has reduced the fraud incidences by 90 per cent. Many customers are now embracing the use of electronic (ATM and POS) channels in their transaction because of near impossible efforts of would-be fraudsters in being able to clone debit cards to perpetrate fraud as it was the case during the pre-migration era.”

    On the introduction of cashless programme in some states and cities in the country, Sanusi said, “there would be prevalent use of debit cards to perform transactions on ATM, POS and Internet banking, and these transactions would have to pass through public infrastructure which are prone to cyber threats (a source of vulnerability) as being experienced in developed economies.”

    He said “cases of debit and credit cards cloning are vulnerable areas that need urgent attention for the country to reap the benefits of cashless society.”

    Another challenge to the cashless programme of the CBN, Sanusi lamented, will be “displacing cash as the preferred means of payment.”

    Nigerians are so attached to using cash that “the cost of cash to Nigeria’s financial system is high and increasing, in fact, direct cost of cash is estimated to reach N192 billion in 2012″ Sanusi said.

  • Local content: biometric registration for expatriate workers

    The Nigerian Content Development and Monitoring Board (NCDMB) has directed that expatriates working in the Nigerian oil and gas industry would, henceforth, undertake biometric registration as part of conditions they must fulfil before their organisations can secure expatriate quota approvals from the Board.

    The exercise, according to the board, will capture details of all foreigners working for operating and service companies in Nigeria on the electronic platform – Nigerian Content Joint Qualification System, (NOJICJQS) being operated by the Board.

    NCDMB Executive Secretary, Ernest Nwapa stated this in Lagos at the Addax Executive Business Seminar on Nigerian Content. He said the exercise will start in the first quarter of 2013.

    The registration, he noted, will help the board evaluate the skills of the expatriates and confirm that such skills are not available locally in the industry. It will also assist the board to electronically track the numbers of expatriates in the industry, their length of stay, compliance with provided succession plans and expected date of exit.

    He said at the completion of the biometric registration, each expatriate will get a unique card, which he or she will produce whenever the monitoring team from the board comes around for periodic verification.

    Nwapa added that Section 33 of the NOGICD Act mandates operators to apply and receive the approval of the Board before making any application for expatriate quota to the Ministry of Internal Affairs or any other agency of the Federal Government.

    Among other conditions, the Board requires companies seeking to get expatriate quota approvals for their operations in the oil and gas industry to first advertise the positions to Nigerians through national and international media outfits.

    Other new initiatives of the Board endorsed by its Governing Council chaired by Mrs. Deziani Alison-Madueke, include the planned establishment of industrial parks in each oil producing state in partnership with the state governments. This will stimulate the participation of the communities in the local supply chain and provide a direct platform for collaboration with original equipment manufacturers that are now required to manufacture a minimum proportion of components in Nigeria.

    He said the Board will collaborate with major operators, service companies and the relevant state governments to build industrial parks, which will support operations of the industry and help achieve service efficiency through shared services.

    Other benefits of the industrial park concept include the reduction of start-up investment cost for new business, stakeholders’ collaboration and industry commitment to utilise manufactured products from industrial parks.

    The parks will host manufacturing activities driven by the oil and gas industry demand but will certainly service other sectors of the economy as they grow organically into integrated industrial zones. The start-up product slate will include steel pipes and allied fittings, switch gears , panels, skids, pipe racks and brackets, environmental protection equipment and chemicals. It will also include industrial gases, computers, telecom and other ICT equipment components, furniture, liquefied petroleum gas (LPG) cylinders, bolts and nuts, and drilling fluids.

    Nwapa said that the strategy has been successfully deployed to stimulate small and medium scale enterprises (SMEs) focused on the oil and gas technology into sustainable engines for technological growth and employment at the grass root level.

    He noted that the major operators will benefit from increased entrepreneurial activities in their host communities, adding that the Board has reached out to the state governments to participate in an SME fair to enable it identify companies with potentials to incubate and grow.

    In this way, over 100,000 productive jobs will be created across the communities for skills ranging from professional to artisanal and deemphasize the social employment prevalent in the communities.

    “The fair will identify SMEs with capacity, which will be supported and accommodated in the new industrial parks to manufacture goods used in industry with the active involvement of the traditional OEMs,” he added.

    He said the Board would activate the provisions of the Act to provide specific incentives for OEMs that participate in the initiative such as locking in orders for equipment or components manufactured/assembled in these parks for extended period. He added that Nigerian companies had committed to invest over $600 million in the manufacture and assembly of various equipments and components.

  • Biometric ID database for launch

    Dragnet Solutions, computer-based testing and talent management firm, in partnership with the United Kingdom-based biometric solutions company, Warwick Warp (UK) Limited, is to launch a Centralised Biometric Identity Database for West African Countries.

    Managing Director, Dragnet Solutions, Mr Robert Ikhazoboh, said the project was borne out of the need to provide a modern and efficient identification system that is private-sector driven.

    “At Dragnet Solutions, we are noted for our bouquet of innovative products and services that are carefully designed to address seemingly intractable challenges. This project also follows this same business philosophy of Dragnet. The challenge of identification verification is one that has been with us for years and it appears that various efforts to address it have been unsuccessful,” Ikhazoboh said.

     

  • Tinubu: Nigeria must use biometric verification

    Tinubu: Nigeria must use biometric verification

    Former Governor of Lagos State and Leader of the Action Congress of Nigeria Asiwaju Bola Ahmed Tinubu has urged the Federal Government and the Independent National Electoral Commission (INEC) to learn lessons from the just concluded general elections in Ghana.

    Tinubu, who arrived in Abuja yesterday from Ghana where he went to observe the elections, said the nation’s democratic system would be better off if the Federal Government and the INEC could adopt the biometric system for future elections.

    He said: “Until we adopt the biometric verification system as demonstrated by the Ghanaian electoral body, we will continue to have problems with manipulation, rigging and ballot stuffing.

    “You cannot rig or manipulate electoral materials under the biometric system. You cannot snatch ballot boxes and do multiple thump printing with the biometric system.

    “The ballot box becomes useless for whoever decides to snatch or steal it because the biometric verification system is rigging proof. Even if you take the ballot box away, the machine will reject your manipulations.”

    Tinubu advised the electorate to always demand accountability in the electoral process, saying that those charged with the management of elections must be made to face sanctions whenever they fail to deliver.

    He said: “Before now, the INEC may have excuse for failure. But with the last Ghanaian elections, Professor Jega has no excuse to fail. This is a country that does not have the type of resources we have in Nigeria, yet they were able to conduct free fair and transparent elections.”

    Tinubu said the most interesting aspect of the Ghanaian election was that it was the opposition parties that demanded the use of t he biometric system and despite the constraints, the sitting government had to go along with it.

    He added: “The Nigerian people want to see transparent elections and committed leadership. Investment in democracy is investment in the rule of law. Leadership is all about accountability. We can’t continue to pay lip service to these ideals.

    “The Ghanaian election was well organised, the rules were obeyed, no violence anywhere, no guns and the ballot boxes were properly sealed.”

    He observed that voters in remote areas of the country were unable to vote on election day but that arrangements were made for them to vote the next day and the process went smoothly.

    The former governor commended the high level of awareness among the electorate in Ghana, saying that the voters were orderly in conduct even where there were about 1500 voters in a polling booth.