The apex bank’s Branch Controller in Benin, Michael Mbeze, stated this yesterday during a three-day training of students of the institution on the eNaira.

Mbeze, stressed that the eNaira, just like the physical naira, was also an official legal tender of the Federal Republic of Nigeria and a direct liability of the CBN, hoping that it would provide a platform to drive the digital economy of the country.

“The CBN believes the eNaira will make a significant positive difference to Nigeria and Nigerians, including improving the availability and usability of Central Bank money, supporting a resilient payment system ecosystem, encouraging financial inclusion, reducing the cost of processing cash, increasing revenue and tax collection, facilitating diaspora remittances.

“The CBN desires to partner with key stakeholders like institutions of higher learning such as Benson Idahosa University and other members of the public to deepen the adoption of the eNaira both as a payment system and a medium of exchange and transaction settlement,” he said.

Speaking on the three days training of the university students on the eNaira project, one of the trainers, Nwankpa Izuchukwu, said the CBN was trying to start an eco-system using the youths to drive and spread eNaira across the country.

He maintained that the training would make it easier for the students to create the awareness since they are within the eco-system, adding that it is faster and cheaper to use students as ambassadors to drive the policy

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Responding, the acting Vice Chancellor of the university, Prof. Johnson Oyedeji, said BIU is poised to support policy that would grow the nation financially and benefit Nigerians.

He stressed that the  eNaira policy of the CBN must have been well thought out and should be efficiently implemented  for the overall benefit of the society, pledging that “as a university, we are going to support it”.