The Executive Secretary of the National Identification Authority (NIA), Wisdom Kwaku Deku, says the Ghana Card has become a globally recognised identification document accepted for travel within the ECOWAS sub-region and at more than 44,000 airports worldwide.

Speaking at the NIA’s 20th anniversary celebration, Mr. Deku said the national identification system has significantly reduced identity barriers and improved access to services across the country.

According to him, the Authority has so far registered more than 19.4 million Ghanaians aged 15 years and above and issued over 18.7 million Ghana Cards.

He added that more than 229,000 foreigners have also been enrolled onto the system.

“By insisting on free issuance at the inception of the National Identification System project, we dismantled economic barriers and eliminated identity silos across the country,” he said.

Mr. Deku noted that the Ghana Card has gained international recognition and continues to strengthen Ghana’s digital identity infrastructure.

“The Ghana Card we hold today is recognised for travel within the ECOWAS sub-region and is accepted at over 44,000 airports worldwide,” he stated.

He further disclosed that through the Identity Verification System Platform (IVSP), the NIA has processed more than 200 million biometric verification requests successfully.

“Through the Identity Verification System platform, the IVSP, the NIA has processed over 200 million biometric verification requests without a single hitch,” he added.

The Executive Secretary also revealed that the Authority has cleared a backlog of more than 640,000 Ghana Cards in 2025.

According to him, the NIA has resumed nationwide registration exercises for children between the ages of six and 14.

He said more than 90,000 children have already been registered in the Volta and Oti regions.

Mr. Deku further disclosed that proposed amendments currently before Parliament seek to make biometric verification mandatory for transactions in order to strengthen the integrity and security of Ghana’s identification system.