In 2020, Ghana’s government officially announced its universal QR code payment platform. Institutions and banks would enable payments for their customers through the use of QR codes.
The platform was launched during the COVID pandemic when most services and businesses were being pushed towards digital.
Details
The platform, operated by Ghana Interbank Payments and Settlement Systems (GhIPSS), allows customers to make instant payments for goods and services from different funding sources (mobile wallets, cards, bank accounts) by scanning a QR code displayed by merchants with their smartphones.
The platform is interoperable, meaning that customers can use any payment service provider to scan any QR code generated by any merchant.
By The Numbers
By current estimations, the GhQR platform has about 130,000 merchants onboarded with a volume of 958,774 transactions as of 2022.
Mobile Money Is Still King
Despite, the seeming adoption, many Ghanaians still prefer to use cash or mobile money for their transactions, as they are more familiar and comfortable with these modes of payment.
Mobile money transactions surpassed GHC 1 trillion in 2023, despite the implementation of the controversial e-levy.
Cash is also seen as more secure and convenient than QR payments, especially for small transactions. Mobile money is also widely available and accessible, as it does not require a smartphone or an internet connection.
Incentives
To overcome these challenges and increase the adoption of QR payments in Ghana, there is a need for more collaboration and innovation among stakeholders, such as the central bank, GhIPSS, banks, payment service providers, merchants, customers, and regulators.
Some of the possible solutions include:
- Creating incentives and rewards for merchants and customers who use QR payments, such as discounts, cashbacks, loyalty points, or prizes.
- Improving the infrastructure and network coverage in rural and remote areas, or using alternative technologies such as offline QR codes or USSD codes that do not require internet access.
- Integrating QR payments with other popular payment methods such as mobile money or cards, or allowing customers to use multiple funding sources within one QR payment transaction.
QR payments have the potential to transform the payments landscape in Ghana and position it among the top cashless economies in the world.
However, there is still a long way to go before QR payments become mainstream and widely accepted by merchants and customers. It will require concerted efforts and innovative solutions from all stakeholders to overcome the challenges and unlock the opportunities that QR payments offer.
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