Grapevine

74 financial institutions now access NIRA database, says BoU

Bank of Uganda (BoU) has indicated that at least 74 supervised financial institutions now have access to the National Identification and Registration Authority (NIRA) database.

The access, which is part of the plan to enhance the Know Your Customer (KYC) strategy as mitigation against fraud and associated risks and enhance financial inclusion, was launched in 2020 by Bank of Uganda in partnership with Uganda Bankers Association and Financial Sector Deepening Uganda to implement a section of the Registration of Persons Act, 2015 that provides for the use of a national ID and invariably the associated National Identification Number (NIN), to access certain services, including those of a financial nature.

It authorises supervised financial institutions to collect pre-agreed customer data, which is then submitted to the e-KYC system hosted by Bank of Uganda for authentication.

In its annual report for the year ended June, Bank of Uganda indicates that as of June 2024, there were 74 financial institutions accessing the NIRA database, 47 of which were at production and 29 at testing stage.

The report goes further to break down the categories of financial institutions that access the database, noting that a total of 27 commercial banks now have access, 21 of which are at production, while seven are at the testing stage. One, which the report does not mention, was suspended.