Central Bank of Nigeria (CBN) has introduced a digital currency called e-Naira to Nigerian tertiary institutions to enable members of the academic environment to offer better payment prospects in retail transactions when compared to cash payments and to enable students to pay their school fees through e-Naira.
Mrs. Tinat Esther Catherine, branch controller of CBN in Jos, Plateau State, who disclosed this during a courtesy call on Professor Tanko Ishaya, vice-chancellor, University of Jos, said Nigeria is the first country in Africa to introduce the digital currency.
She started by stating that e-Naira is a Central Bank of Nigeria-issued digital currency that provides a unique form of money denominated in Naira, adding that it serves as both a medium of exchange and a store of value, offering better payment prospects in retail transactions when compared to cash payments.
The branch manager disclosed that e-Naira can be used for a number of things, including the payment of school fees, adding that payments with e-Naira are seamless and the settlement is instant.
“Students are the targets of the CBN’s engagement in this regard, and the best place to engage students is in the university because they will take it around and introduce it to their peers outside the university. We are introducing it to the University of Jos because we want school fees to be paid via E-Naira.
She said, “We are here to flag off the e-naira which the CBN started in October 2021. After going through so many tests, it has come to stay, the purpose of this is that we want to capture the students because they will take it around, pay courtesy visits to the VC and flag off using the campus because we want school fees to be paid using the e-naira.
“The CBN is the first in Africa to hold this digital currency, Nigeria is moving forward, and we want to encourage the merchant, everybody to enrol on this platform. Jos is the 10th to be enrolled, it has taken place in other cities, Port Harcourt, Lagos and others. The economy of the world is evolving; it is transforming so neither will the CBN want to be left behind so we decided to key into it.
“This will be done through technology which will make transactions very easy. Once you have the wallet, you can purchase anything through the e-naira. We are bringing it to the University, with the permission of the VC, everyone can start using the e-naira to pay school fees and purchase anything. Even if you want to have the cash, you can transfer it from your wallet to your bank account and then withdraw it.
“This is a Nigeria project, not just a CBN project, the cost of the transaction will be made easy. We encourage our children here to use it, we have the merchant and the individual wallets, and we plead to the University to embrace the e-naira.”