The President of the Ghana Association of Banks, John Awuah, has announced that banks have totally rested the light-skinned vehicles serving as bullion vans.
According to him, the process was a little delayed, and it took several months before they were finally cleared.
“It is good to report that now the process has been streamlined. So, we have the vans, and as I speak with you, the soft-skinned vans have been rested and we are using the armored bullion vans,” he stated.
This comes after the killing of another police officer in June at Ablekuma in Accra, while he was escorting a vehicle sent to collect cash from a fuel station.
The modification comes in response to the Bank of Ghana’s recommendations following an increase in robbery attacks and the killing of police officers.
Banks, in collaboration with Armored Bullion Operators, purchased around 154 vehicles to help with cash movement.
The trucks are heavily armored to protect the occupants of the vehicle.
President of the Armored Bullion Operators, Alhaji Idi Sumaila previously stated that the vehicles had been approved by the Interior Ministry and the Police.
According to the President of the Ghana Association of Banks, the banks are also working on other solutions to phase down the vehicle cash-transfer system.
This, Mr Awuah noted is because “we don’t a situation where you have armoured vehicles running down the street as though you are in a certain kind of clerical environment.”
He added “we want to operate in a manner where we can safely use few vans. Vans can also begin sharing cash within locations. If we plan our locations well, it is possible to achieve that.”