The GhIPSS payment bureau is a payment service that uses the e-zwich Payment Distribution System (PDS) for the disbursement of salaries and allowances electronically onto e-zwich cards. The Bureau also provides an effective payroll management system using the    e-zwich biometric search engine.

1.  How does the Bureau Operates?
The operations of the Bureau are in two levels: Making Payment on behalf of an Employer and Auditing payroll files

• Making Payment on behalf of an Employer
  An employer paying workers or beneficiaries on the e-zwich card can employ the services of the GhIPSS payment Bureau.

Payments will be done by:

• creating an excel payroll file capturing the; Recipient name, Amount and e-zwich card number.
• The payroll data will then be imported as a "text" or "csv" file into the e-zwich payment distribution application.
• The pay roll data will be validated (Validation is a one off process and it is done to ensure there are no duplications in the biometric details of beneficiaries)
• The application will distribute the funds based on the data on the payroll to the   e-zwich cards of the beneficiaries.

Alternatively, the Payment Bureau can set a company up to perform the payment function themselves. In this case:

• The PDS software be will installed on the PC of the designated payer
• The GPB will provide the designated payer with all the necessary training required to perform the function effectively

In all these scenarios, interested companies will have to consult the Bureau on the most appropriate option.  

• Auditing Payroll Files on behalf of an employer
  This is done using the e-zwich biometric search engine. Employers who want to audit their payroll file will submit the names and e-zwich card numbers of their beneficiaries to the Bureau. This information will be validated against a master list.  A detailed report on the outcome will then be submitted back to the employer.

2. Can companies who do not want to pay workers/ beneficiaries on e-zwich use the search engine?
Yes they can. But to perform the biometric search function (auditing pay file), all their employees or beneficiaries will have to get e-zwich cards. This will assist the Bureau to  identify them uniquely and weed out all possible duplications in the pay file. Organisations can then use the cleaned pay file to transfer salaries/ allowances to account numbers using the Direct Credit platform or any other means of payment.

3. How safe are the operations of the Bureau?
The Bureau is equipped with state of the art facilities that mitigate against any delays in payment. Our systems are tested and tried. Again Organisations who do business with the bureau are assured of confidentiality in payment data.  Other control mechanisms put in place to ensure maximum security include:

• A set up of an end to end funds transfer protocol
• Validation and Verification process where payment records presented by the organization is checked against the whole e-zwich database.
• A final validated list shall be deemed to be the payment file during a particular payment period
• Dip Stick - Periodic verification of PDS reports.
• Vertical look up (Vlook up) - 100% of PDS report against validated list.
• Internal and External auditors to audit all processes, thus Verification, Validation, Host Account Mini Statement and PDS report against files sent via ftp

4. Benefits of using the Bureau

• For  security and efficiency.
• The Bureau provides timely review of all payment records through a pre-audit exercise to assure clients of the display of due diligence and value for money.
• For efficient payroll management.
• Ensures good audit trail