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MTN Ghana to reward Mobile Money subscribers for patronising digital payments
In a bid to promote digital payments in this era of COVID- 19, Mobile Telecommunication giant MTN has launched the ‘MoMo Pay & Win’ promotion to reward customers who make payments for goods and services through Mobile Money Merchant IDs and QR codes in the months of August and September.
The service provider, in a statement, said the points based promotion gave customers the opportunity to earn and accrue points when they make payments.
“Customers earn one MoMo point for every GH¢1.00 paid. Payments should have been made to at least five unique Merchants ID numbers within the month to qualify for a prize.
“At the end of each month, the top 2,000 customers who earn the most points will be declared winners. The 2,000 selected customers will be presented with e-cash prizes ranging from GH¢10,000.00 to GH¢50,000,” it said.
Speaking on the promo, the General Manager of MTN Mobile Money Limited, Mr Eli Hini, said that the promotion was to “encourage customers to enjoy convenience of making payments using a merchant ID or a QR code which eliminates the handling of cash and ensures a safe and secure transaction”.
He urged retail outlets, churches, hospitals, associations and unions, etc to embrace Mobile Money payment as a means of receiving all forms of payments to reduce the time spent on sorting, counting and transporting cash to the banks.
“Digitisation is facilitating the new normal and at the centre stage of this is digital payments. With the merchant pay, your money is kept safely and sales can easily be tracked,” he noted.
The ‘MoMo Pay & Win’ promotion was launched on August 5 as part of activities to celebrate MoMo month under the theme “The Relevance of MoMo in a COVID 19 World”. It was to encourage customers to adopt digital payments over physical cash.
The MTN ‘MoMo Pay and Win’ promotion will end on September 30, 2020. Customers can check their accrued points for the month by dialing *120#. At the end of each month, the winners will be presented with their prizes.
Other activities outlined to create excitement for customers during 2020 MoMo month celebration are digital fairs and social media quizzes.
With the launch of the promotion, MTN has intensified its campaign against fraud. The service provider advised customers to be careful of the activities of scammers.
It said the company did not charge any money or its equivalent before prizes were redeemed, hence “any request for money, recharge cards or airtime before a prize is redeemed is fraudulent”.
“Calls originating from MTN on the promotion will be made through the official line 0244300000 only,” it added.
MTN MoMo Month was instituted in 2012 and had for the past eight years been instrumental in driving awareness, influencing policy and deepening the use of Mobile Money services.
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UNODC partners GFA Foundation on Prison advocacy and mentorship programme
The GFA Foundation and the United Nations Office on Drugs and Crime (UNODC) have agreed to work together to advocate for anti-discrimination and the elimination of stigmatization for prisoners and prisons.
This partnership was agreed, in principle, during a meeting at the Home of Football (GFA Head Office) between the Director of the GFA Foundation and the UNODC Team led by Mr. Christoph Capelle, an Associate Expert in Crime Prevention and Criminal Justice and the Coordinator of the prison and penal reform project in Ghana.
Welcoming the Team to the Home of Football, the Director of the GFA Foundation, Mr. Malcolm Frazier Appeadu briefed the team about the GFA Foundation – Ghana Prisons Project which has covered 6 prisons across the country already.
He indicated that the Foundation is liaising with the Ghana Prisons Service to commence the second and third pillars of the project, which are the coaches and referees training programs as well as the advocacy and mentorship initiatives.
He said that the GFA Foundation will welcome partners for the execution of the second phase of the project which will include Ankaful Maximum Security Prison, Kumasi Central Prison, Sekondi Central Prison and three other prison facilities.
In his response, Mr. Christoph Capelle commended the GFA for the GFA Foundation – Ghana Prisons Project which seeks to use the power of football to promote the wellbeing, reformation, rehabilitation and reintegration of inmates of Ghana’s prisons into society.
Mr. Capelle said that UNODC is looking forward to a collaboration with the GFA Foundation on possible programs for both the medium and long term to support football and sports jobs and skills development in Ghana’s prisons.
He extended an invitation to the GFA Foundation to be part of an assessment of overall prison rehabilitation programmes including the use of sports by their international consultant at the Ankaful Maximum Security Prison.
There will be a football match and donation of footballs, sports items and equipment to the prison facility.
Present at the meeting were Mr. Kwame Koramoah, an officer at the GFA Foundation and Integrity Office, Helena Adobea Ofori, Associate Programme Officer, UNODC and Caleb Elorm Agodzo, Administrative Officer, UNODC.
It will be recalled that in 2020, The UNODC and FIFA signed a Memorandum of Understanding (MOU) to tackle corruption and crime in and through sports and pledged to consider ways in which football can be used as a vehicle to strengthen youth resilience to crime and substance use through the provision of life skills training.
The MOU was renewed last year by FIFA President Gianni Infantino and UNODC Executive Director Ghada Waly in New York on the sidelines of the United Nations General Assembly.
News
Gomoa West: NPP, NDC supporters clash over commissioning of DRIP equipment
Supporters of the National Democratic Congress (NDC) and the New Patriotic Party (NPP) on Monday morning clashed over the commissioning of machinery for the District Road Infrastructure Project in the Gomoa West District of the Central Region.
According to Citi News sources, the conflict began when NDC supporters questioned the decision to display images of Bismark Basie Nkum, the NPP’s Gomoa West parliamentary candidate on the DRIP machinery.
This disagreement quickly escalated, almost leading to a physical altercation between the two groups.
Baisie Nkum, who doubles as the District Chief Executive (DCE) for Gomoa West, further claimed that the Member of Parliament for the area, Richard Gyan Mensah, brandished a pistol and issued threats against the NPP’s local leadership.
A viral video circulating on social media captured the DCE accusing MP Richard Gyan Mensah of pulling out a gun and threatening NPP supporters during the heated incident.
Source: Citinewsroom.com
