To empower 10m MSMEs by 2025
Microsoft has partnered with Flutterwave to revolutionise financial services and inclusion in Nigeria and other parts of Africa through the financial technology (Fintech) space to catalyse economic growth and improve peoples’ daily living.
Announcing the partnership yesterday in Lagos, the President, Microsoft Africa, Lillian Barnard, said partnering with companies such as Flutterwave would help the firm accelerate financial innovation and digital inclusion in Africa.
She said the partnership is a big deal because people are still struggling to have access to financial services to pay their bills, noting that the collaboration has opened doors of growth and opportunity for many businesses.
Barnard said 50 per cent of the 1.4 billion people in Africa are unbanked, underbanked, and underserved, noting that this cannot be allowed to continue, noting that for businesses in Africa to thrive digital and financial inclusion are super important.
She said that is why Microsoft is partnering with Flutterwave in the realisation of financial inclusion and digital revolution to ensure many businesses receive millions of payments in a seamless way around the world.
According to her, the Microsoft OpenAI platform and service will allow Flutterwave to even further expand its operations to millions of merchants around the world.
Barnard also disclosed that the goal of Microsoft is to invest and empower 10 million Small and Medium Enterprises (SMEs) by 2025 by giving them the right tools, infrastructure, scaling and help them establish strategic partnerships.
She said Fintechs are helping SMEs and the informal sector, which creates a bulk of employment as they provide seven out of 10 jobs in the country and contribute about 40 per cent to the Gross Domestic Product (GDP) of any economy.
Also speaking, the Country Manager, Microsoft Nigeria, Ola Williams, said 80 per cent of Nigerians have access to mobile systems, which has spurred growth in the Fintech space and made a lot of people participate in mobile payment.
She said the flow of investment in Fintech contributes to 36 per cent of growth to the economy, adding that Microsoft understands the impact of technology in driving positive change in the society and job creation through collaborations.
The Chief Executive Officer of Flutterwave, Olugbenga Agboola, said the Fintech firm is proud to be on the Microsoft is the cloud platform for the future with the aim of serving billions of Africans without having a downtime as well as providing infrastructure that will make payments really simple for the average consumer in Africa, or anywhere in the world.
