‘Mobile Payment Innovation and Closing the Digital Financial Inclusion Gap; Post COVID-19’, was the theme of the Ecobank Digital Financial Inclusion Virtual Summit held yesterday, in partnership with Vanguard Economic Forum Series.
The event brought together decision makers, business leaders and top industry professionals as speakers, panelists and participants and they discussed ways to enhance digital transformation and financial inclusion.
The Summit provided a platform to discuss the need for a comprehensive alignment of policy and regulatory frameworks among regulators like CBN, NCC, NITDA to support a sustainable digital financial inclusion growth, examine key issues and ways of advancing digital financial inclusion for women, youths and MSMEs and discuss the role of interoperability in mobile payment innovation. Participants x-rayed the role and impact of agency banking for financial inclusion growth as well as the need for public and private sector investments in internet infrastructure and mobile connectivity growth in rural areas.
It also helped communicate and connect with Nigeria’s largely unbanked population on the urgent need to adopt and subscribe to innovative digital payment channels.
Speakers drawn from technology, banking, telecommunications and other key sectors of the economy included Alan Sinfield, CEO of 9Mobile, Ronke Kuye, CEO, Shared Agent Network Expansion Facilities Limited (SANEF), Jacqueline Juma of EfinA, a transformative specialist in Digital Financial Services (DFS), Engr. Gbenga Adebayo, Chairman of Association of Licensed Telecom’s Operators of Nigeria (ALTON), Jimoh Musa, Director Payment Systems, Central Bank of Nigeria, CBN, Eze Anaba, Editor, Vanguard and the chief host, Patrick Akinwuntan, Managing Director and Regional Executive of Ecobank Nigeria.
Mr. Akinwuntan said the event was an opportunity to examine the unique opportunities that financial inclusion agenda has for Nigeria, which is on top globally as a high mobile penetration space. He stressed the need to enhance financial inclusion and prosper wealth creation by bringing together mobile phones, cards and agency banking to reach everyone on a sustainable level. This will also deemphasize cash transactions.
Akinwuntan said Ecobank was committed to working with relevant partners to ensure that full financial inclusion is achieved, and spoke about the potentials in boosting financial inclusion through involvement of Nigerians in agency banking, where Ecobank, through Ecobank XpressPoint is blazing the trail in the country, with several thousand agents spread all over Nigeria.
On the security issues in the country which have put most of those involved in agency banking at great risk, with attacks from robbers and bandits, the Ecobank MD said the ultimate solution was to have as many people engaged in productive activity in sectors like Agriculture, Education, Health, Transport and Commerce. The more people get to have access to financial empowerment at the grassroots, he said, the lower will be the security issues as most people want to be gainfully engaged. He also noted that insurance services will also be more readily accessed through digital financial platforms, while banks and financial institutions were also sustaining security arrangements through support for the various security architecture in place across the country.
Alan Sinfield of 9Mobile welcomed the summit as a necessary platform for knowledge-sharing towards national development. He said 9Mobile was working seriously to improve innovation in mobile payments and applauded the CBN for its recent issuance of Payment Service Banks, (PSBs) licenses to his company and two others, saying this will boost the financial inclusion process.
It will be recalled that Central Bank of Nigeria recently granted final licenses to start operations to 9 PSB (9Mobile), Hope PSB and Moneymaster PSB. The final approval to the three Payment Service Banks to operate, follows their compliance with the licensing requirements which were stipulated by the apex bank, and Sinfield said 9Mobile will help provide innovation to ensure financial inclusion in the length and breadth of Nigeria.
Other speakers proffered several ideas to ensure a successful financial inclusion programme.
The Ecobank Digital Series is a virtual programme organised by Ecobank to educate and enlighten the public on crucial issues of public interest, especially as it relates to their financial empowerment and yesterday’s partnership with Vanguard Conferences and Economic Forum Series was another held in quick succession during this pandemic. The last one took place in October on, ‘Financial Services & Remittance Solutions for Nigerians in Diaspora: Leveraging Ecobank’s Pan-African offering as the Nation Celebrates 60’.
