GUYANESE will soon be expected to adopt more modern, safe and efficient means of monetary transactions following the launching of the National Payment System (NPS) development plan.

The plan is being spearheaded by the Bank of Guyana (BoG) and was launched by Minister of Finance Winston Jordan at a press conference on Friday.
The BoG said that the change is necessary to meet the economy’s current and future needs through the upgrading of laws, regulations and infrastructure.

According to the NPS plan, the proposed target for the realisation of the payment system is 2030, while a 2017-2021 medium-term action plan will serve as the first phase towards this achievement.

Guyana’s current state of payment experiences challenges with electronic transactions; high cost and limited accessibility to remittances; an absence of major-risk mitigation; a lack of legal clarity and certainty, and limited stakeholder engagement.

These and more, the document indicated, will be pursued over the four-year period.
Within that time, the bank will work to pass a National Payment System Act with supporting legislation, which will address the finality of payments and the legality of electric signatures and documents.

The strategy and action plan are organised around nine pillars of a conceptual framework which the World Bank developed.
It includes legal framework; large-value payments; retail payments; government transactions; security depository, clearing and settlement; money markets; international remittances; oversight and cooperation.

The success of the strategy will be measured against the achievement of a range of factors, some of which include the public’s adoption and use of cashless payment, fraud prevention and data confidentiality.

In addition, the government is expected to play an active role through the Ministry of Finance and other agencies, mainly by setting the example in transitioning from paper-based to electronic-based instruments.

Likewise, private sector Payment Service Providers (PSP) and Payment System Operators (PSOs) are expected to lead in the implementation.
The BoG has observed that for consumers and small and medium-sized businesses, cash and other paper-based instruments remain heavily relied upon.

Additionally, only a handful of electronic and remote payment services are available.
However, in mid-2018, the bank intends to introduce an Electronic Funds Transfer (EFT) system which will ensure increased efficiency, reduced administrative costs, simplified book-keeping and greater security.

The bank will need to build customer confidence and awareness in electronic payments through collaboration with the government and the private sector.

A preliminary draft of the strategy was issued to stakeholders for their input in 2016.
The Bank of Guyana has broad regulatory and supervisory responsibilities and was established under the Bank of Guyana Ordinance No.23 in 1965, just seven months before the country gained political independence.