We're the only country with a digital card, even US doesn’t have one – Bawumia

Flagbearer of New Patriotic Party (NPP), Dr. Mahamudu Bawumia has lauded the Nana Addo Dankwa Akufo-Addo administration for its implementation of a digital card.

He said the ‘Ghana Card’ is the only digital card in the world and highly advanced nations like the United States of America does not have one.

Speaking at a campaign platform, the Vice President said if the NPP government is retained in the 2024 general elections, such novel innovations will continue.

“The Ghana Card, the United States of America doesn’t have one, the United Kingdom doesn’t have one. Ghana is the only country in the world that has a digital card, he said.

Dr. Bawumia also announced that the Ghana Card will be used as the sole document to apply for passports from next year.

He said applicants for a Ghanaian passport will cease to buy forms and they will present their Ghana Cards to get their passports.

Ghana Card registration for infants

In March 2024, Dr. Bawumia launched a new policy that will see new infants issued a Ghana Card immediately they are born.

This would provide them with unique identity numbers in addition to the issuance of birth certificates. With that, babies delivered in health facilities, would have their biometric details captured in the District Health Information System (DHIS) e-tracker at the community health posts or health centres, and lightwave in the hospitals.

The initiative was made possible through the collaborative efforts of the Ministry of Health, Ghana Health Service, the Births and Deaths Registry and the National Identification Authority. These institutions have integrated their systems to facilitate the registration of newborns from zero to six years.

Speaking at the launch of the initiative at the Ga North Municipal Hospital in Accra, Dr. Bawumia said, the integration of the system would ensure that every child born in Ghana was immediately provided with a unique identity, linking them to their mother’s identity and securing their place within the national life.

Apart from that, he said it would also ensure the protection of their rights, effective planning of essential services like health, education and social welfare, which supports economic growth and poverty alleviation.

The Ghana Card at birth system begins from the antenatal period, where the mother’s record is associated with Ghana Card.

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