ePayment Goes Into Schools’ Curriculum

ePayment, transaction in which monetary value is transfered electronically or digitally between two entities as compensation for the receipt of goods and services is to be incorporated into Nigerian Universities’ curriculum, Nigeria CommunicationsWeek can reveal.
Though no date has been given for the take off, the initiative is to begin with the University of Lagos (Unilag), and would be followed by other universities across the country.
Already, proponents of the initiative are in talks with the management of Unilag to site a mobile hub at the University pending the review of the curriculum.
The move is borne out of the need to create a knowledge centre where research and studies on ePayment are carried and acquaint students’ with electronic payment systems before graduating from the university.
Experts in the ePayment space said ePayment if well harnessed portends great opportunities for the country.
“e-Payment, if properly implemented will push this country high up on the development index. It will promote efficiency in the delivery of government service and catalyze the IT industry,” said John Obaro, MD/CEO SystemSpec.
Meanwhile the e-Payment Providers Association of Nigeria (E-PPAN), a non-profit organization representing the Nigerian e-payment industry and its stakeholders has moved to tackle challenges confronting deployment and usage of Point of Sale (PoS) terminals in Nigeria.
Mrs. Bridget Morris, manager, Transaction Payment Solutions (TPS) Zambia, noted that there is an awareness/knowledge gap about card products.
She said that “Card products and services are a complete “black art” in some parts of the country occasioned by lack of knowledge even within banks, which is inhibiting the growth of the industry, and that many bank divisions need to be part of successful PoS initiative, adding that PoS needs to be promoted the way ATMs were, previously.”