Nigeria hosts financial inclusion conference

The National Financial Inclusion Steering Committee headed by the Central Bank of Nigeria (CBN) will host Nigeria’s maiden International Financial Inclusion Conference (IFIC’22) on November 24 and 25 in Abuja.

The conference, which theme is: “Financial inclusion for all: Scaling innovative digital models” is the first since the country launched its National Financial Inclusion Strategy (NFIS) in 2012.

Chairman of the National Financial Inclusion Steering Committee and Governor of the Central Bank of Nigeria (CBN), Godwin Emefiele, said: “We are excited to host the maiden International Financial Inclusion Conference in Nigeria. The conference presents a unique opportunity to showcase our financial inclusion journey, particularly the innovative use cases that continue to emerge within the dynamic payments and financial system in the country. These will be important as we work to ensure 95 per cent of Nigerians are financially included by 2024.

“The conference also creates a platform to spotlight other countries’ experiences, the role of policy innovation, digital technology, and out-of-the-box approaches in tackling exclusion in underserved segments, and the strategic importance of public-private partnerships to promote digital financial services and economic sustainability.”

The conference would bring together delegates, experts, and speakers from across the world to examine the opportunities, and identify concrete solutions and interventions that would ensure the achievement of the nation’s financial inclusion objectives.

Personalities expected include President Muhammad Buhari, special guest of honour, Boss Mustapha, secretary to the government of the federation, Prof. Isa Ali Pantami, minister of communications and digital economy.

Policymakers delivering keynotes include Mrs. Elsie Addo-Awadzi, deputy governor, Bank of Ghana, Ambassador Chad Blackman, special adviser to the president, International Labour Organisation (ILO), Dr Alfred Hannig, executive director, Alliance for Financial Inclusion (AFI), Mrs Aishah. N Ahmad, deputy governor, CBN, Mr. Herbert Wigwe, Group CEO Access Holdco Plc, Ms Anna Wallace, senior programme office, Bill and Melinda Gates Foundation, Ms Inez Murray, CEO of Financial Alliance.

The NFIS set the target for financial inclusion in Nigeria at 80 per cent by 2020.