Governor Nasir el-Rufa’i has said the Kaduna State Residents Card would help the government to know citizens, better organise their access to social services like education, basic health care and social interventions as well as conduct business with the government without hindrance.
According to him, the residents’ card will not only identify someone as a resident alone; it enables the holder to use it as a bank card, as a debit card or credit card depending on the type of arrangement the holder has with UBA.
“The card also enhances financial inclusion because its possession immediately gives you the opportunity to have a bank account if you didn’t have one and have a bank verification number.”
Addressing the signing of the Memorandum of Understanding (MoU) between Kaduna State Residents Registration Agency and United Bank for Africa (UBA) on Friday, el-Rufai revealed that the Agency has registered more than 3.4 million residents of Kaduna state out of a total population of about 10 million.
He said the state government had appointed “UBA as the issuing bank for the state’s biometric residence cards. Although the agency has registered 35% of the state’s population, the officials are working round the clock to ensure that the government registers every legal resident of Kaduna state.”
‘’Kaduna state government will soon demand the production of this residents card for you to enjoy some of our social services like education and basic health care. Having the residents’ registration card will also enable individuals and businesses to access interventions for small and medium enterprises as well as interventions related to poverty eradication.
“Kaduna state is concerned about citizens of Nigeria that are registered as residents that pay tax and contribute to the economic wellbeing of our state. UBA has been a veritable partner of the Kaduna state government since 2015. It has been there for us in our times of need, particularly in 2017 when we had disruption in our revenue.”
Speaking at the occasion, Regional Head of UBA, Yusuf Isiaka, expressed gratitude to partner with Kaduna on the project, adding that, “This card can be used for payment and at the same time, as an identity card. The project is going to be a mutually beneficial relationship.”
