The Minority Leader in Parliament, Alexander Afenyo-Markin, has credited former President Nana Addo Dankwa Akufo-Addo with decisively reviving and completing Ghana’s national identification project between 2017 and 2024.
Delivering a public lecture on centre-right governance on March 2, Mr Afenyo-Markin said the Akufo-Addo administration transformed the Ghana Card from a basic physical identification document into a secure biometric platform that has eliminated identity duplication, reduced fraud and strengthened financial inclusion.
He traced the intellectual and policy roots of the project to the institutional framework established under the Kufuor administration but maintained that it was Mr Akufo-Addo who accelerated implementation and oversaw the deployment of a robust biometric identification system anchored on uniqueness, credibility and interoperability.
According to him, the National Identification Authority was retooled and re-energised to deliver what he described as “a secure and singular identity verification instrument.”
He noted that the Ghana Card has evolved into a multifunctional national document, serving as an electronic passport and integrating with the National Health Insurance Scheme to simplify identification and access to services.
Mr Afenyo-Markin said the capture of unique fingerprints, iris scans and verified personal data had eliminated duplication and curtailed fraud within banking, telecommunications and public payroll systems.
From what he described as a centre-right perspective rooted in the Danquah-Busia-Dombo tradition, he argued that the National Identification System reflects the principle of empowering the individual within a rules-based market economy.
“A secure legal identity is foundational to participation in a property-owning democracy,” he said. “It allows citizens to open bank accounts, access credit, register businesses, acquire property, pay taxes and transact with confidence.”
The Minority Leader further highlighted strengthened SIM registration and crime-tracing capabilities, enhanced financial inclusion through credible Know Your Customer processes, improved border security in collaboration with the Ghana Immigration Service and reinforced transparency in social intervention programmes.
“The Ghana Card began rewriting the geography of identity access in Ghana,” he declared, describing it as a cornerstone of modern governance, national security and economic participation that has institutionalised accountability and reduced criminal anonymity.
Source:
www.graphic.com.gh
