A postal code or postcode is
the most accurate way to identify a location. It helps to pinpoint addresses
more accurately. Postcode is made up of a series of letters and or digits
representing a postal address, originally developed for the purpose of sorting
mail. However, the original concept has transcended to other application areas
for national development and service provision.
But in Ghana, ask
for directions to or locations of places and you will be treated to some
historical antecedents – by the time this is completed, you would have forgotten
about the beginning of the story and thus unable to find the space and place
you are after. A typical example is “get
to the centre of the town and ask for Nana Kwaku Mensah’s store, next to it is
a filling station. Follow the road in front of the filling station and you will
come to a junction with a big tree where they sell palm wine. Upon reaching
there, ask for Mr Stiko the lawyer and even a child will take you there”.
Many organisations
and institutions also dream of integrating an address system to their business
operations and decision making. Their interest in an address system manifests in
their operational documents such as application forms which requires a client
to enter the building name/number, street, postcode/zipcode. However, because a
postal code system is currently unavailable in Ghana, they end up using
customers’ ID cards with their picture and name. Whilst researching, I asked a senior
bank official: “How do you profile your clients to determine their credit worthiness?”
“We only use the ID cards, it is just the face, retorted the Officer! No
address!”
GhCode is a postal
code system for Ghana that has been developed at the right time to solve the problems
enumerated above and to underpin the country’s drive to achieve accelerated
economic growth and development. It has been developed taking into
consideration the unique characteristics of Ghanaian cities and towns and the
dynamics of its people.
Benefits
GHCode is ideal for a
variety of applications including:
- Speedy emergency services delivery such as crime fighting, profiling and ambulance services to reach emergency cases and determining the shortest routes to hospitals.
- Local government tax collection analysis, projections and targeting.
- Urban Planning and Development.
- Marketing analysis.
- Retail planning and management of territory.
- Determination of insurance premiums by insurance companies.
- Loan risk analysis and identification of customers by banks.
- Utilities planning and billing.
- Incorporation to national identification system.
- National electoral register.
- Credit profiling of citizens.
In addition, it would enable
the postal service of Ghana and other courier services to undertake door to
door delivery of posts, whilst at the same time providing employment to solve some
of the high rates of unemployment in Ghana. It would also boost ICT revolution
in the country to underpin the running of services such as developing
applications to determine nearest services including schools, hospitals,
restaurants, churches, online marketing and shopping and other allied services.
Finally, the benefits of the
GhCode system is immense and can only be limited by the imagination of the
user.
Further details and sample
GhCode can be found at www.ghcode.net
Anthony Tuffour.
My blog is GHCOD Healthy
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