CBN, mobile money operators trade blames over termination of cash swap programme

The CBN recently announced it would be ending the cash swap programme it launched in the heat of the naira scarcity thus stopping most unbanked residents in rural areas from swapping their old notes for new ones.

This was disclosed by the acting spokesperson of the CBN, Isa Abdulmumin who also noted that the programme had fulfilled its mandate.

This position has however been argued by the Association of Mobile Money and Bank Agents in Nigeria, AMMBAN as the group has countered the federal government by describing the programme as ineffective.

The group added that the level of stakeholder participation in the program did not meet the required numbers as Nigerians across the country are yet to feel the full benefit of the program.

The cash swap was introduced as a means to further make available the new naira notes to the unbanked residents in interior parts of the country excluding Lagos and Abuja.

The program was billed to commence on Monday, January 23, 2022, and would allow Nigerians in the affected areas to exchange the old N1000, and N500 notes for the newly redesigned notes.

This project was initiated in conjunction with the Deposit Money Banks, DMBs, Super Agents, and Mobile Money Operators across the country.

However, the program has come to hit the rocks as the new notes have not been circulated enough to reach the already agitated citizens.

According to a report, the Centre for the Promotion of Private Enterprise has said Nigeria’s economy has lost about N20 trillion following the naira crisis as over 70 percent of the whole cash in circulation has been mop-up.

Speaking further, the National Publicity Officer of AMMBAN, Oluwasegun Elegbade attributed the numerous protests across the country and the attacks on banks as a clear explanation of the level of unsatisfaction from the citizens and also, a confirmation that the FG’s programme failed.

He said, “The programme has not been really effective as it should. If it worked, we would not have witnessed the number of crises that erupted across the country.”

Elegbade also hinted that for the swap to be successful, the group hoped the FG would deepen the participation of the stakeholders and also, improve the monitoring as most operators were allowed to run the whole process with little supervision.