Vice-President Dr. Mahamudu Bawumia has revealed that passengers will soon be able to check on their phones if the commercial bus they are about to board has been properly insured.
He said the database of the National Insurance Commission (NIC) and the Driver and Vehicle Licensing Authority (DVLA) were being integrated for a takeoff in January 2020.
According to him, it is part of efforts to make it possible to access government services and also ensure corruption is reduced to a manageable level.
Speaking at a special National Insurance Commission Cocktail Reception which brought together key players in the insurance sector on Wednesday night, Dr. Bawumia said that the insurance industry has very important roles to play in the digitization programmes of government.
“After meetings with the DVLA and the National Insurance Commission about creating better synergies between them, it is expected that the Motor Insurance Database will be connected to the Driver and Vehicle Licensing Authority (DVLA) system in January 2020 so that before a vehicle is issued with a road worthiness certificate, it can be verified whether it has a valid insurance cover from a licensed insurance company,” he said.
He added that “the Motor Database will also make it possible for the travelling public to verify the authenticity of the insurance policies of commercial vehicles before they board such vehicles. All you have to do is to enter the number of the car on your phone, even if it is a ‘yam’ phone, and you can tell if the ‘trotro’ or bus you are about to board is properly insured or not. You will know whether you are safe sitting in that car. This certainly brings better awareness and protection for the ordinary Ghanaian.”
“The database will also help to stop the leakages from the insurance revenues through fake motor insurance stickers. Same thing has happened at the Passport Office. So we are getting there. The digitization agenda, which is designed to make accessing government services easier, is on course,” he said.
Dr. Bawumia noted that even though digitization brings significant advantages and opportunities, it also creates vulnerabilities which could be critical and, therefore, need to be carefully managed. Government is, therefore, taking several steps to protect the nation’s information infrastructure as part of the digitization programme, he added.
“First of all, appropriate laws have been passed to provide the needed framework for the fight against cyber criminals. The Electronic Transactions Act and the Electronic Payments Act regulate and protect electronic transactions and payments. The Data Protection Act also protects the private data of government, citizens and businesses in Ghana.
He commended the NIC for their hard work and urged them to deepen the collaboration with state agencies.
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