In an effort to ensure financial transparency in the health sector, the Ogun State Government has introduced the cash-less policy in all hospitals owned by it.
The Permanent Secretary in the state Ministry of Finance, Mrs. Ajibola Chokor, revealed this at a sensitisation meeting with the stakeholders on the need for the policy in Abeokuta on Tuesday.
A statement quoted her as saying that the introduction of the policy would ensure transparency and accountability in the revenue generation process of government, reduce leakages and curb the incidents of robbery attacks in hospitals.
Chokor stressed that the state was already implementing the policy in its revenue collection in all government-owned tertiary institutions, maintaining that it had helped to increase revenue generation by about 20 per cent.
She urged participants to ensure that the policy was well implemented for it to be accepted by members of the public, noting that it would also assist the government in developing an accurate and sustainable financial model for each hospital as well as ensure efficiency and reduce cash handling.
Also speaking at the occasion, her counterpart in the state Hospital Management Board, Dr. Doyin Sodipe, allayed the fears of revenue collectors of possible job loss, saying that rather, they should see the policy as complementing their duties.
The Project Director in the Ministry of Finance, Mr. Gabriel Olukoga, said the policy would assist in book keeping and transaction processing, adding that it had been tested and seen to be more secure, safer and faster.