Governor of the Bank of Ghana, Dr. Johnson Pandit Asiama, has revealed that the central bank is actively working toward integrating payment systems across Africa to make cross-border transactions easier and strengthen regional trade.
Addressing participants at the 2026 ACI World Congress under the theme “Elevating Markets, Empowering People,” Dr. Asiama emphasized that the ability of African financial systems to work together seamlessly remains essential to the continent’s economic future and integration agenda.
He noted that while progress has been achieved in various areas of financial cooperation, payment and settlement systems across African countries remain underdeveloped, resulting in higher costs and inefficiencies for intra-African transactions.
Dr. Asiama pointed out that sending money within the sub-region is often more expensive than transferring funds across continents, highlighting the need for urgent reforms.
He stressed that more work is required to improve financial systems in order to better serve individuals and businesses across Africa.
According to him, a number of initiatives are already being implemented to resolve these challenges and enable smoother cross-border payments.
He mentioned that the Pan-African Payment and Settlement System (PAPSS) is making progress in this direction, alongside other emerging innovations that central banks across the region are supporting.
Dr. Asiama added that regional integration of payment systems remains the most effective path forward and has broad support among monetary authorities.
He further disclosed that the Bank of Ghana is collaborating with the African Continental Free Trade Area Secretariat to explore digital solutions, including stablecoins, to improve cross-border payment efficiency and boost trade across the continent.
He explained that these efforts include experimenting with sandbox environments to test and develop platforms that can support deeper financial integration within the sub-region.