India and Ghana are in talks to link their payment systems – Unified Payments Interface (UPI) and Ghana Interbank Payment and Settlement Systems (GHIPSS) respectively to allow users to make instant, low-cost fund transfers.
Details
The two countries have also delved into discussions on the potential of a Memorandum of Understanding on Digital Transformation Solutions. Local Currency Settlement System and the opportunities it offers African Continental Free Trade Agreement (AfCFTA).
What they say
“Agreed to work fast for NPCI (National Payments Corporation of India) UPI operation in Ghana’s GHIPSS within a period of 6 months“, the Ministry of Commerce said on the social networking platform X.
Zoom out
India’s UPI has already reached countries including Singapore and UAE. India is also in talks with Nigeria for the same implementation.
NPCI International recently announced its partnership with Bank of Namibia to support them in developing a real-time payment system similar to UPI in the African nation.
By The Numbers
Bilateral trade between India and the West African nation of Ghana has grown to $2.87 billion in 2022-2023 from 2.6 billion dollars in 2021-2022.
The trade gap is in favor of Ghana mainly because of gold imports from India, which account for almost 80% of total imports from Ghana.
The big picture
Ghana exports gold, cocoa, cashews and timber products, among others, to India. It imports pharmaceuticals, agricultural machinery, transport vehicles, electrical equipment, plastics, iron and steel, ethyl alcohol, beverages and spirits, cereals, ready-made textiles from India.
Source: NDTV Profit
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