Dr. Dominic Ayine
A delegation of 38 Members of Parliament (MPs) from two committees of the House was dazzled by the technical and security features incorporated in producing the Ghana Card after visiting the Intelligent Card Production Systems facility owned by the Margins ID Group.
The delegation, drawn from the Subsidiary Legislation Committee and the Defence and Interior Committee, was co-led by Dr. Dominic Ayine, MP for Bolgatanga and Ophelia Mensah Hayford, MP for Mfantsiman.
The purpose of the visit was to participate in a stakeholder engagement focusing on the facility’s 20-year history of manufacturing during which they observed the real-time production of the Ghana Card and gained a comprehensive understanding of the project.
Hosted by Moses Kwesi Baiden Jnr., the Founder and CEO of Margins ID Group and its subsidiaries, the delegation received an in-depth briefing on the Ghana Card project.
The engagement highlighted the government’s longstanding effort to establish a functional national ID system, culminating in a successful Public-Private Partnership (PPP) between Margins ID Group and the National Identification Authority (NIA).
This collaboration has resulted in the registration of 17,623,923 Ghanaians and the printing of 17,562,045 cards as of November 17, 2023.
The MPs praised the Margins ID Group and its subsidiary, Intelligent Card Production System (ICPS) for the delivery of the Ghana Card through the NIA.
Chairman of the Subsidiary Legislation Committee, Dr. Dominic Ayine, said they were impressed with the operations of the state-of-the-art factory and the security consciousness of the company.
He stated that the card is multifunctional and has several advantages for the country in terms of fiscal stability, the promotion of tax compliance, promotion of the registration of businesses, and social inclusion.
Dr. Ayine said it was important for MPs to be present at the stakeholder engagement because discourse in Parliament about the Ghana Card has always been about its application to politics, such as the registration of voters.
Vice Chairperson of the Defence and Interior Committee, Ophelia Mensah Hayford, who was also impressed with the company, said the visit had offered MPs with the full facts about the Ghana Card project.
According to her, this will help dispel misinformation and disinformation about the Ghana Card.
She described the visit as fruitful and educational.
The Margins ID Group Founder, Moses Kwesi Baiden Jnr., took time to elaborate on the PPP framework and emphasized the private partner’s role in conceptualizing, designing, and building the national id system.
He noted the private partnership had helped to independently fund the project, including financing, and producing all cards in advance for the NIA.
The Intelligent Card Production Systems (ICPS), a multiple award-winning manufacturing arm of Margins ID Group, holds certifications at the highest global standards, including ISO 9001:2015, PCI Security Standards Council, Europay, MasterCard, and Visa.
Currently, it is the only facility in the sub-Saharan Africa certified by Intergraf to central banking level.
By Ernest Kofi Adu
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