By Gareth Vaughan
With its soldiers looking forward to their first pay rise in four years, the New Zealand Defence Force (NZDF) is considering whether to introduce a prepaid card for them to provide petty cash management, travel support and an allowances payment system.
In a Request for Information (RFI) the NZDF is asking card issuers to contribute to the development of a strategy and business case on the viability of prepaid cards for NZDF personnel across the Navy, Army and Air Force. At June 30, 2011 the NZDF had 14,346 personnel in total.
"NZDF seeks to understand the prepaid card market to assess the viability, cost effectiveness and organisational fit of a prepaid card with a view to providing a modern petty cash management, travel support and allowances payment system," the RFI says.
The NZDF is asking respondents to detail their ability to support the issuance and processing of card products in New Zealand and prepaid cards globally. They're also asking respondents for a list of countries where they can't provide coverage, as well as details of their system to enable the NZDF to issue and load value on prepaid cards, plus how they'll enable the NZDF to provide support to its personnel. Additionally the NZDF asks for any compliance considerations and requirements it ought to be aware of such as anti money laundering.
Naturally, the NZDF also wants a run down on the type of fees it'd be charged for the set up and implementation of the cards, including ongoing costs.
In its 2012-2015 Statement of Intent the NZDF says it's experiencing significant change driven by both internal and external forces. Its greatest organisational challenge is described as the concurrent reorganisation of the NZDF and achieving its Cabinet-directed savings target of NZ$350 million to NZ$400 million annually by 2014/15.
"We must fund current and future capabilities from within our budget of around NZ$2.27 billion from 2013/14. We will achieve this by saving and reinvesting money, and reallocating people and effort from non-operational activities to operational capabilities. We are reviewing our core business and considering what we can do differently or stop doing altogether. Together with our strategic and industry partners, we are looking for innovative new ways to operate and deliver the services we need," the Statement of Intent says.
Quoting NZDF Chief Lieutenant General Rhys Jones, Fairfax Media reported yesterday that some NZDF personnel will get their first pay rise in four years after NZ$45 million was allocated for troops, reserves and civilian staff. A further NZ$40 million was to be used for a one-off buy-back of entitlements and conditions of service that are being phased out.
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