By George Odok
The Central Bank of Nigeria (CBN), in collaboration with Bankers’ Committee, on Monday carried out awareness and sensitisation campaign on cashless policy and e-Naira for traders at the popular watt market, Calabar.
The awareness campaign featured a popular Nollywood actor, Imeh Bishop-Umoh, popularly called “Okon Lagos”.
The Nollywood actor, who spoke in Efik language urged the traders to embrace electronic payment with a view to reducing movement of cash and to making transactions seamless.
Also speaking, Mr Chika Ugwueze, Assistant Director, Payment System Management, CBN, said the campaign was meant to sensitise the public on the CBN cashless policy as an alternative to cash usage in Nigeria.
Ugwueze said that the CBN initiated the e-Naira platform as an alternative to cash.
He explained that e-Naira was a digital form of cash that is stored in a wallet, hence all Nigerians are advised to download and use the e-Naira as an alternative to cash.
“The important message to all Nigerians is that the e-Naira is not an alternative to your bank account, but an alternative to cash in your wallet because it offers efficiency in payment and improves security.
“Generally, the e-Naira has helped to deepen the payment options in the market. The CBN has developed different platforms of using the e-Naira.
“As long as you have a telephone in Nigeria, you can have access to the e-Naira
“There is no deadline for going cashless; we are just presenting options that will widen payment platforms and make them available for Nigerians,” he said.
Also speaking, Mr Thomas Udie, Relationship Manager, Access Bank, Calabar, said that the initiative was to create awareness on the cashless policy and e-Naira.
Udie said that there was the need for traders and residents of the state to embrace the different platforms of electronic transactions with a view to reducing the movement of cash.
According to him, Access bank branches in Calabar have no issues with cash disbursement to customers, adding that the CBN has been supplying them with cash for business.
He said that the queues in most of the Access bank branches in Calabar metropolis have also reduced.
Also, Mrs Ebere Bassey, Assistant Banking Officer, Zenith Bank, Calabar, said that the awareness was timely in view of the cashless policy of the CBN.
Bassey encouraged the traders to embrace the electronic means of payment and reduce the over dependence on cash.
One of the traders at the event, Mrs Theresa Okon, said that although the policy was a good one, they still needed cash for their day-to-day businesses. (NAN)
