The National Identification Authority (NIA) has announced that biometric verification is now mandatory for all transactions involving the Ghana Card following the coming into force of an amendment to the National Identity Register Regulations (L.I. 2111).
Under the new provisions, it is now an offence for any individual or organisation to rely on photocopying or visually inspecting a Ghana Card for identification purposes during transactions.
According to the NIA, organisations that fail to comply with the directive will be liable, upon summary conviction, to fines ranging from 500 to 2,000 penalty units, while individuals who contravene the regulations face fines of 50 to 500 penalty units.
The Authority said the changes follow the maturity of the L.I. 2111 amendment, which was laid before Parliament three months ago and has now been gazetted.
The NIA indicated that the Minister responsible for the Authority will, in the coming days, address the public on measures being implemented to enforce the amended regulations.
In preparation for the rollout, organisations requiring identity verification services have been encouraged to apply for onboarding onto the NIA Identity Verification Platform by sending an email to idverification@nia.gov.gh.
Meanwhile, the government has appointed Wisdom Yayra Koku Deku as the Acting Chief Executive Officer of the National Identification Authority.
By: Bernard Mensah |Planbfmonline.com
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