American financial service company, Mastercard said, from the public records, the concession awarded to Chams with regards to the production of National Identity cards was terminated in February 2015 by the National Identity Management Commission (NIMC) for non-performance.
This is contained in an email response from Weber Shandwick, Mastercard’s PR agency in Africa to ITPulse’s queries on reports that a Lagos court has stopped Mastercard from producing the National ID Cards in Nigeria.
Mastercard said it has not breached any agreement with Nigeria’s Chams Plc. Rather, it is NIMC that terminated Chams’ contract.
“Mastercard has not breached any agreements with Chams or other parties involved in relation to this project and will continue to play its part in Nigeria’s growth and economic development as true partners to the country and its people. We remain committed to these efforts, always operating with the highest integrity, standards and practices,” part of the response reads.
The email explained that, given the overwhelming importance of an Identity Management System in Nigeria, MasterCard partnered with Chams Consortium in conjunction with the National Identity Management Commission (NIMC) in 2010 to provide identification cards that will enable customers to receive and send payments.
It added Mastercard received confirmation from NIMC that its prepaid payment solution would serve as the pilot payment solution for the project after the Federal Executive Council had approved the award of the contract for the production and personalization of the cards in the pilot.
Mastercard has been in Nigeria for more than 15 years, working in collaboration with partners across the country to support inclusive growth and the digitization of cash.
In a press release issued earlier this week by an agent of Chams Plc, the company disclosed that, Justice R.M. Aikawa of the Federal High Court in Lagos has ordered Mastercard and her agents to stop issuing cards.