Upon disclosure that Nigeria prints about three billion bank notes annually, the Nigerian Security Printing and Minting Company (NSPMC) has affirmed that cash-less policy of the Central Bank of Nigeria would reduce the amount of naira to be printed by the apex bank in the future Nigeria CommunicationsWeek can report.
Mr. Ehidiamen Okoyomon, Chief Executive Officer, NSPMC, who gave this figure at the ePayment Thought Leadership Breakfast Series organised by Intermarc Consulting Limited in Lagos, lauded the cash-less policy as it would further lessen the pressure on the naira.
While further disclosing that cash handling that cumulated the increase in prints contributed to the loss in value of the currency lately, Okoyomon said, “The cost of printing the bank notes varies from denomination to denomination. But I can tell you that we print close to three billion bank notes per year and the CBN’s cash-less policy will definitely reduce the pressure on the naira.
“The substantial part of the money we print is due to cash handling, but if we go cash-less, it will reduce the cost of cash handling for the government, the banks and individuals.”
Okoyomon, who stated that statistics show that Nigeria stands, after the United States, Indonesia, India and China as the world’s five biggest spenders on currency printing; although he could not disclose the cost of printing such a high volume of currency.
Meanwhile, the cash-less policy would not stamp out the usage of cash, the NSPMC boss said, “All over the world, statistics have shown that the use of cash is not reducing in spite of e-payment drives, what only happens is that there is less of physical cash transactions. Even the European countries are increasing their cash prints.”
On the success of the ePayment pattern, Okoyomon stressed that stakeholders, including the CBN, banks, service providers and others, must work align with the government.
The NSPMC chief emphasized that getting the country’s infrastructural silhouettes right would engineer success of the ePayment scheme. “There must be enlightenment, publicity and education, and there must be infrastructure upgrade; and above all, the security must be perfect. And every policing making process in Nigeria must be strategic. For instance, if we don’t consider sustainability, the ePayment may be relaxed later. In any case, it is a robust scheme.”