Vice President, Dr. Mahamudu Bawumia has unveiled the government’s agenda to introduce the E-cedi, highlighting its potential to combat money laundering and various forms of corruption.

The E-Cedi, a digital equivalent of the local currency, was originally conceptualized by the Bank of Ghana (BOG) in 2021.

Despite the successful completion of a trial phase, the official launch of the E-Cedi has been delayed due to what the BOG has termed economic disruptions.

Addressing the 14th Commonwealth Regional Conference for Heads of Anti-Corruption Agencies in Africa in Accra, Dr. Bawumia underscored the significance of leveraging digital technologies in the fight against corruption.

“We are also using digital technology to track money and suspicious activity and we are working very closely with the central bank and they are piloting to introduce a central bank digital currency (CBDC) which we call the E-Cedi.

“And with the successful piloting of the E-Cedi, which is essentially a digital version of our currency with appropriate privacy protections. With that successful pilot, it will be the ultimate weapon in our fight against corruption.”

“The CBDC will be the ultimate weapon because the E-Cedi will make it easy to track the movement of money and identify suspicious activity. It will provide us with high-level transparency, reduce the risk of fraud, and reduce the level of tax avoidance and money laundering,” he stated.

Additionally, Dr. Bawumia outlined the government’s initiatives to safeguard the financial integrity, through the implementation of the National Identification System.