NIG commends FG on e-payment

The Nigeria Internet Group (NIG), has commended the Federal Government (FG) for introducing electronic payment (e-payment) system for government transactions.

ITRealms Online recalls that FG had in the last quarter of 2008, made it mandatory that payments to personnel and contractors would from January 2009, be made electronically, according to the Accountant General of the Federation.

With this, all Federal Government transactions would now be done electronically to the beneficiary’s account.

Reacting to the development, NIG President, Mr. Lanre Ajayi, at the end of the first executive meeting for 2009, of the group in Lagos, said that it is a welcome development and a march towards the actualization of the e-government initiatives in all fronts of the government dealings.

This, he also said, is in line with the objectives of NIG’s Internet for Job (I4J) initiative, which focuses on creating awareness on the need to take businesses and government services online.

It could be recalled that NIG last year held its one-day seminar on I4J, with a theme “Internet for Jobs: Creating Jobs by promoting eCommerce.”

Speaking at the event held in Lagos, Mr. Ajayi stressed his group’s hope to engage some members of the international community in the promotion of the ideals of I4J, noting that Nigerians posses enormous potentials that are waiting to be explored.

“We are about to be proven right in our belief that given the right environment and the right encouragement Nigerians can excel even in electronic business (e-business) and e-government,” he said.

NIG, he said, is confident that I4J initiative would kick start a dotcom boom in the country, where many online businesses would spring up and create wealth for the populace.

“We are also confident that some of the projects that will benefit from the I4J initiative shall grow to become multinational companies in the mood of Yahoo, Amazon, Google and so on,” he said.

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