The Central Bank of Nigeria’s (CBN) new policy on cash withdrawal limitations should allow for more financial inclusion, according to the Association of Senior Staff of Banks, Insurance, and Financial Institutions (ASSBIFI).
The group said that Nigeria has not reached the level of financial inclusion and argued that the policy should allow for inclusivity, particularly in places where payment channels like online payment are not readily accessible.
During the transfer event, Olusoji Oluwole, the new national president of ASSBIFI, who succeeded Oyinkan Olasanoye as association president, said this. If the necessary infrastructure was not put in place, he claimed that the policy would be problematic.
“To achieve a cashless environment, it is not just banks, it will involve the banks, power sector and the telecoms sector, which all must be up and running, if not, nothing will happen right; ”he said.
Oluwole hoped for a revision of the policy and described it as adding more difficulty to an already difficult situation. He noted the benefits and drawbacks of the policy, saying: “The pros enhance the cashless society but it should be a cashless society where there is inclusiveness. We have people who are in an environment where they don’t have inclusiveness. We have people who do not have bank accounts because they cannot provide the minimum requirements to be banked. If these are not addressed it becomes a problem for us. The lack of inclusiveness is the negative part of it.”
“The cons are that there is a limit to what you can carry. Our problem with this kind of policy is they always put the cart before the horse. You come out with a policy that you’ll start thinking of how to make it work, rather than working on how it will work gradually before we go on to full implementation.”
“When we look at the charges, for those who have illicit funds, it is not a problem to them but for those with genuine businesses, what the policy has done is to bring additional taxation on them.”
“With the minimal profits from small businesses, they pay taxes, rents and we are asking them to pay money to get their money. What that happened is that they are going to shift the problem to the rest of us and we are talking of fighting inflation. Who is going to bear the cost? We are looking at it critically, by looking at the problems faced and solutions required. It goes beyond the impact of the policy on our workers; it cuts across the entire economy.”
“It would have been good if they had invited stakeholders, which is supposed to be the normal thing. Coming out with that kind of policy suddenly is a problem for us without coming out with clear-cut reasons.”
The new ASSBIFI leader has pledged that his administration will be inclusive, open, and focused on members’ welfare, rights, and lives outside of work.
He pleaded with the Nigeria Employers’ Consultative Association (NECA) and the Federal Ministry of Labour and Employment to intercede and persuade employers and management in the financial sector to revise the sector-wide Collective Bargaining Agreement (CBA), which had been set to expire in 2007.
If the CBA had been examined, he said, some of the tensions in the industry would have been avoided altogether. He said that if the CBA review process was delayed further, the labor movement could be forced to bring up Nigeria at the next ILO International Labour Conference.
The new ASSBIFI leader has pledged that his administration will be inclusive, open, and focused on members’ welfare, rights, and lives outside of work.
He pleaded with the Nigeria Employers’ Consultative Association (NECA) and the Federal Ministry of Labour and Employment to intercede and persuade employers and management in the financial sector to revise the sector-wide Collective Bargaining Agreement (CBA), which had been set to expire in 2007.
If the CBA had been examined, he said, some of the tensions in the industry would have been avoided altogether. He said that if the CBA review process was delayed further, the labor movement could be forced to bring up Nigeria at the next ILO International Labour Conference.
