Digitalisation agenda: USSD voter verification payment counterproductive introduction

By Kofi Anokye OWUSU-DARKO (Dr)

The introduction of a 50p fee for the USSD on-line Voter Register verification in Ghana sparks significant concerns about the inclusivity and effectiveness of the nation’s digitalization agenda, particularly as it potentially hinders citizens’ constitutional right to vote.

While digital services are a critical component of modern governance, imposing costs on such essential fundamental constitutional functions risks alienating economically disadvantaged citizens and undermining voter participation.

Ghana has made commendable strides toward embracing digitalization as a key driver of economic growth and improved governance. From the digitization of public services to the introduction of electronic payment systems, the government’s commitment to creating a modern, tech-savvy society is evident.

However, the recent implementation of a fee for verifying voter registration via a USSD Voter Register Exhibition service (*711*51#) raises critical questions about whether the country’s digitalization efforts are truly accessible to all.

This article explores the implications of monetizing essential digital services like voter verification and argues for a more inclusive approach. For Ghana to fully benefit from its digital transformation, the government must focus on fostering widespread adoption and ease of access, rather than erecting financial barriers that may deter citizens from engaging with the digital world

The importance of digitalization in governance

In the modern era, digitalization has become a cornerstone for transforming economies and governance structures worldwide. For a country like Ghana, which is eager to position itself competitively in the global digital economy, embracing digitalization is not just an option but a necessity.

The government’s digital transformation agenda, particularly through initiatives like e-government, holds the promise of streamlining service delivery, enhancing transparency, and fostering greater civic engagement.

Digitalization in governance involves the reorganization and optimization of government processes through Information and Communication Technologies (ICT). This shift from manual to digital systems offers several benefits: it enables real-time data processing, reduces bureaucratic delays, and ensures that services are accessible to citizens anywhere, at any time.

For instance, the digitization of voter registration and verification processes, as seen with the USSD service introduced by the Electoral Commission, represents a significant step toward modernizing civic services.

However, the true value of digitalization lies not only in its ability to enhance efficiency but also in its capacity to foster inclusion and equity. A well-implemented digital governance framework ensures that all citizens, regardless of their socio-economic status, have equal access to essential services.

This is particularly crucial in Ghana, where a significant portion of the population may still be marginalized from digital services due to financial or infrastructural barriers. The government’s role, therefore, extends beyond merely introducing digital services; it must ensure that these services are affordable, accessible, and user-friendly for all Ghanaians.

Looking at global examples, countries that have successfully integrated digital services into governance have done so by prioritizing the diffusion of these technologies rather than monetizing them at the early stages.

In Estonia, digital services such as e-Residency, e-Voting, and online tax filing are provided at no cost to citizens, fostering near-universal adoption and establishing the country as a leader in digital governance. Similarly, India’s Aadhaar program and Unified Payments Interface (UPI) have revolutionized digital transactions by offering free access, thereby facilitating broad participation across diverse socio-economic groups.

Denmark, Canada, and Singapore have also embraced this approach, ensuring that essential digital services are free to use, thereby promoting inclusivity and widespread adoption. These countries recognize that the initial focus must be on onboarding citizens into the digital ecosystem, building trust, and ensuring ease of use. Only after achieving significant penetration and digital literacy does it make sense to consider monetization in specific areas, if at all.

For Ghana, which is still in the early stages of its digital journey, these examples are particularly instructive. The country is far from achieving the level of digital integration seen in these more advanced jurisdictions.

Introducing fees for fundamental services like voter verification at this stage could be counterproductive. Such fees risk alienating those who are already hesitant or unable to engage with digital services, particularly the economically disadvantaged.

Instead, Ghana should focus on making these services freely accessible to encourage widespread adoption, much like the successful strategies employed by other countries. By doing so, the government can lay the foundation for a digitally inclusive society, where every citizen can participate fully in the digital economy.

Private sector approach

The private sector in Ghana has long recognized the importance of reducing barriers to digital access as a means of enhancing customer engagement, fostering loyalty, and building long-term trust.

Many private institutions, particularly in the banking and financial services sectors, have successfully implemented digital services that are not only accessible but also free of charge for their customers.

This approach has significantly contributed to the rapid adoption of digital tools in these industries, offering valuable lessons for the public sector, especially in the context of services like voter verification.

1. Fee-Free USSD Services: Several banks and financial institutions in Ghana offer USSD services that allow customers to check account balances, transfer funds, and even pay bills without incurring additional charges.

These services are designed to be user-friendly, ensuring that customers can access them regardless of their location or the type of mobile device they use. By eliminating fees, these institutions have removed a significant barrier to access, thereby encouraging widespread use of their digital platforms.

For instance, customers of major banks can check their account balances or transfer money using simple USSD codes at no cost. This fee-free approach has not only increased convenience for customers but also deepened their engagement with these digital services, making them an integral part of their daily financial activities.

The banking sector’s success in promoting digital adoption through fee-free services demonstrates the importance of making digital tools accessible to all users, particularly in building trust and long-term customer relationships.

2. Enhancing Customer Experience: The private sector understands that in the digital age, customer experience is paramount. Offering free access to essential services is part of a broader strategy to build trust and foster long-term relationships with customers. By ensuring that digital services are accessible without financial barriers, private companies have been able to enhance the customer experience, leading to higher satisfaction and loyalty. This trust, once established, forms the bedrock of a sustainable digital ecosystem, where customers feel confident in continuously engaging with digital platforms.

In the context of USSD services, free access allows customers to interact with their service providers frequently and conveniently. This regular interaction builds familiarity and trust, making customers more likely to explore and adopt other digital services offered by the institution. The absence of fees thus acts as a catalyst for broader digital engagement—something that could be equally beneficial if applied to public sector services.

3. Lessons for the Public Sector: The success of the private sector in offering fee-free digital services provides valuable lessons for public institutions like the Electoral Commission. If the goal of digitalization in governance is to enhance participation, inclusivity, and trust, then the government must consider the importance of removing financial barriers to access. Just as banks have successfully engaged their customers by offering free USSD services, the public sector could similarly boost citizen engagement and trust by eliminating fees for essential services like voter verification.

Moreover, the public sector could leverage the private sector’s experience in enhancing user experience and promoting digital literacy. By making digital services more accessible, user-friendly, and trustworthy, the government can encourage more citizens to engage with these platforms, thereby advancing its digitalization agenda and building the necessary foundation for a digitally inclusive society.

Learning from the private sector, it’s clear that successful digitalization efforts depend on prioritizing accessibility, ease of use, and trust, especially in the early stages of implementation. Private companies have shown that eliminating fees and focusing on customer experience can lead to widespread adoption of digital services.

This approach is particularly relevant for Ghana as it seeks to onboard more citizens into the digital economy. By removing barriers such as fees, the government can ensure that its digitalization efforts are inclusive, fostering greater trust, participation, and long-term engagement among all Ghanaians.

These insights from the private sector underscore the importance of removing financial barriers to digital access and prioritizing customer experience in fostering widespread adoption. As the private sector in Ghana has shown, eliminating fees and enhancing user accessibility can lead to deeper engagement and long-term trust.

The government, particularly the Electoral Commission, can leverage these strategies to ensure that its digitalization efforts are inclusive and effective. By adopting similar practices, the public sector can pave the way for a more digitally integrated society.

The way forward: eliminate financial barriers to digital services

For Ghana to fully realize the potential of its digitalization agenda, it is crucial to eliminate financial barriers that hinder access to essential digital services. A supportive digital ecosystem must foster inclusion, accessibility, and widespread adoption, ensuring that no citizen is left behind as the country transitions to a more digital future.

One of the most immediate steps the government can take is to remove fees for critical services, such as voter verification. The primary responsibility of the government, and by extension the Electoral Commission, is to bring Ghanaians onto the e-government digital platform and ensure the country becomes digitally competitive.

At this early diffusion stage of digitalization, the focus should not be on generating revenue through Internally Generated Funds (IGF), but rather on encouraging widespread adoption of digital tools.

Unlike passport applications, which are pursued on a need-to-have basis, voting is a fundamental democratic right. Charging fees for voter verification defeats the very purpose of ensuring free and fair access to this right. The introduction of a 50p fee for each USSD voter verification search raises serious concerns about the intent behind this charge.

Unless, of course, the USSD application was developed by a private entity and the fees are being collected to compensate them, this fee appears unjustifiable. Even with that, in the current digital age, the development of USSD applications is no longer a complex or expensive process. It is not necessary to establish a Public-Private Partnership, if that is the case, to develop a USSD for the voter verification for which fees must be collected, especially when the government already employs skilled programmers who could easily develop such applications to be owned and operated by the government itself.

This raises an important question: where is the 50p per search fee going? The Electoral Commission already receives an approved budget from Parliament to carry out all electoral processes, including voter registration verification. Digital verification should be seen as a natural extension of these processes, not an extraordinary service for which citizens must pay. Charging citizens for digital voter verification is tantamount to charging them to exercise their Constitutional right to vote.

Furthermore, the more people are able to verify their registration status online, the less time and resources will be needed for manual verification processes. In an ideal scenario, where trust in the Electoral Commission’s processes is robust, manual verification could be greatly minimized or even eliminated altogether.

This would bring about significant efficiencies, reducing the cost of printing and setting up verification centres in each constituency. To further cut costs, the Electoral Commission could consider printing only the records of those who have not been digitally verified for manual verification, while providing verification confirmations to those who opt for online verification.

However, the lack of trust in the Electoral Commission’s processes necessitates the maintenance of both full manual and digital verification systems. This dual approach erodes the potential efficiencies that digitalization promises. If both systems must be upheld simultaneously, where then is the efficiency?

Efficiency of the system

One of the major benefits of e-government initiatives, particularly through the digitalization of government services, is the promise of enhanced effectiveness and efficiency. Digital systems are intended to streamline government operations and provide user convenience in Government-to-Citizens (G2C) interactions, offering clear advantages over manual processes or face-to-face interactions. However, my recent experience with the USSD voter verification service suggests that these benefits are not being fully realized.

On Saturday at 11:07 PM, I completed my USSD verification and was informed that I would receive a confirmation message shortly. However, by 6:31 PM on Sunday—12 hours later—I had yet to receive any confirmation. The subject matter of this article is not meant to evaluate the technical or design aspects of the online Voter Register Exhibition service, nonetheless, the inefficiency experienced warrants discussion.

For e-government to truly succeed, citizens must have confidence in interacting with government online. This period of onboarding is critical; if Ghana misses this phase, it risks falling behind in the global shift toward a digital world. Unfortunately, experiences like mine only serve to heighten existing skepticism among citizens, many of whom are already wary of fraud in online interactions. The absence of a prompt confirmation after using the USSD service left me wondering if the code was genuine, despite the system correctly identifying my name when I entered my voter registration number.

The message containing the verification details should be delivered in real-time, immediately upon request. This kind of “wow” factor is what encourages citizens to embrace digital services, as it demonstrates the convenience and efficiency promised by digitalization. Instead, I am now left with anxiety, checking my phone repeatedly and questioning whether I have been scammed. This is far from the seamless user experience that e-government services are supposed to provide.

Even in a manual voter register exhibition, after queuing to check your name, you are not told to go home and return later for confirmation—you receive the information immediately. How much more should this be the case in a digital system?

I find myself wondering if the delay is because I made the request on a weekend or at night, as if the system is operating under the same constraints as a manual G2C engagement, where government agencies are not active outside working hours. This highlights the strong case for those advocating for a 24-hour economy in Ghana, emphasizing the need for our application designs and digital infrastructure to evolve and support such a shift.

E-government services cannot merely tick off the boxes for software and application existence; the hardware and infrastructure that make these systems functional are equally critical. The system must work, and it must work reliably, to build and sustain the trust of the citizenry.

Conclusion

While Ghana has made commendable strides toward digitalizing its governance processes, the imposition of fees for fundamental services like voter verification stands in stark contrast to the goals of inclusivity and accessibility that should underpin these efforts. The experiences of other countries and the private sector in Ghana clearly demonstrate that eliminating financial barriers is key to fostering widespread digital adoption and trust.

During this initial phase of digital diffusion, the government’s priority should be to integrate all citizens into the digital platform by making services free, accessible, and easy to use. Fees should only be considered once digital engagement is widespread, deeply ingrained in daily life, and reverting to offline methods becomes both costlier and less practical.

Charging fees for voter verification not only undermines the right to vote but also risks alienating those who are most in need of accessible digital services. The Electoral Commission, supported by government resources, should prioritize digital inclusivity over revenue generation, ensuring that every Ghanaian can participate fully in the digital economy.

By removing these financial barriers, the government can lay the foundation for a more efficient, trustworthy, and inclusive digital future where all citizens are empowered to engage with and benefit from the digital tools available to them.

That said, given that the fee is already being charged, there is a pressing need for accountability regarding who is receiving this revenue. If it is not the government, clear answers are needed to ensure transparency and trust in the process.

 

The author is an advocate for digital rights and inclusion.  He holds an EMBA (IT Management), an LLB and LLM (IT & Telecommunication). (Blogs : Kofianokye.blogspot.com; Kofidarko2.blogspot.com) contact: [email protected]