CBN pledges commitment to financial inclusion 

The Central Bank of Nigeria (CBN) has pledged commitment to the formulation of appropriate policies to enhance financial inclusion.

It said this would be done from the inputs received from various stakeholders in the Nigerian payment industry towards the expansion and growth of agent networks.

CBN’s Director of Payments System Management, Mr. Sam Okojere, disclosed this at the Q4 2018 edition of PoS Innovation Summit.

Okojere, who was the guest of honour, and represented by Assistant Director, Payments System Management, Mr. Olubukola Akinwumi, said the CBN would maintain a balanced approach in protecting the interests of both the consumers and practitioners in the industry.

The event, with the theme: “Pricing and Shared Agent Network viability” explored the dynamics of the Shared Agent Network Expansion Programme (SANEF) and its capability to accelerate the achievement of financial inclusion goals of the PSV 20:2020.

Also speaking, the keynote speaker and Head, Agent Banking of Kenya Commercial Bank, Dr. Edwin Otieno, shared insights from the strategy employed by the Kenyan institution.

He said they have yielded over 96 per cent growth in the volume of transactions, and driven the National Financial Inclusion index by over 16 per cent.

Otieno stressed the need for corporate bodies to continue providing support to agents on the field through trainings, deployment of enhanced products, documentation of procedures and periodic audit of processes.

Executive Director and Chief Technology Officer of Global Accelerex Ltd, Mr. Stanley Ugochukwu Peters, said the insight and ideas gained from deliberations were clear indications that stakeholders are united in their desire to drive financial inclusion.