Category: Money

The naira yesterday strengthened against the dollar, trading at N745/$ from N750/$ it closed last week.

The naira recovery followed gradual release of new bank notes by banks in line with Central Bank of Nigeria (CBN’s) directive.

Forex Trader with AZA Finance, Ikenna Kalu, said the naira marginal recovery followed lowering of rates by Bureaux De Change (BDCs) to attract dollar buyers.

He said: “Naira’s gradual recovery came after bureau de change outlets lowered rates in a bid to attract dollar buyers ahead of the release of newly redesigned Naira notes that went into circulation this week”.

Kalu said that longer term, the currency remains challenged by falling foreign reserves and persistent dollar scarcity.

“While Nigeria ranks among Africa’s top three recipients of diaspora remittances, as we head into the final weeks of 2022, we expect the Naira to come under renewed pressure, with traders seeking to close out year-end requirements boosting FX demand,” he said.

“Going into 2023, we expect further depreciation for the Naira amid limits to US dollar sales to banks, the CBN’s push to align official rates with market realities and Presidential elections scheduled for late February”.

Global Chief Economist at Renaissance Capital (RenCap), Charles Robertson, said Nigeria is in a difficult position and needs to increase its dollar earnings and other revenue to support the naira.

He said Nigeria should hike taxes, raise more revenue as the country’s current position is so bad, that it has never been witnessed in the last three decades.

Robertson, who is also RenCap’s Head Macro-strategy Unit, added: “Things are not looking pretty good for Nigeria and other emerging markets. Oil production in Nigeria has fallen so badly in the last few years and oil prices is also about falling more. We are going to see disinflationary policies coming because we are approaching recession,” he said.

Managing Director, Financial Derivatives Company Limited, Bismarck Rewane, said the naira is falling on the back of heightened forex demand compared to limited forex supply.

He said: “Nigerian consumers, businesses and individuals alike are facing challenges and headwinds and are reeling in an atmosphere of hopelessness. This is because of a myriad of factors.”

“Notably, the precipitous fall of the naira in the forex market, the power supply shortage and now the almost unaffordable price of diesel. In spite of the hike in interest rates, we are witnessing what some analysts fear may become a bout of runaway inflation.  Inflation is not just domestic but global.”

Managing Director, Cowry Asset Management Limited, Johnson Chukwu, said that to save the naira, Nigeria needs to build an economy that is net exporter of valuable goods and services to earn more dollars.

He said priority should be given to manufacturing and exports to enhance speedy recovery of the local currency.

The Managing Director/CEO, Wema Bank Plc, Ademola Adebise, has said with the advancement of technology, digital banking can play a big role in driving Financial inclusion in the country .

He stated this in Abuja during the official opening of its ultra modern branch at Constitution Avenue, Central in Abuja.

He noted that the Bank being Nigeria’s oldest indigenous bank has evolved in the last decades despite the glaring challenges facing the Banking sector.

“Wema Bank being in existence for the last 7 decades  is expanding its branches today here in FCT as it is not only the capital of Nigeria but also a business hub in the country with over 6,000 Small and Medium Enterprises asides the thousands of Micro businesses operating in the FCT

“Similarly, the Bank is leading in digital banking services since the launch of ALAT by Wema, an application that offers a comprehensive banking and other digital transaction options,” he said.

He added that even as the Bank is expanding its branches, other digital platforms of transactions are operational anywhere around the world.

Speaking further,  Chief Finance & Strategy Officer of the Bank, Tunde Mabawonku said in over 77yrs of the existence of the Bank, it has been operational for 30 years in the FCT

He added that the ALAT banking app has digitised banking experience as Customers have the leverage of using the application different type of services.

He added that the bank is advancing its service delivery strategy by ensuring uniform standards in their branches across the federation

Mabawonku further stated that with the recent cashless policy introduced by the CBN, Nigeria’s may need to adjust to digital banking as it is the way to go.

The Group Head, Growth Marketing Payment tokens and Financial Inclusion Services, Interswitch, Chidi Oluaoha, has reiterated the brand’s commitment to the development of an inclusive payment ecosystem across the African market.

Such payment infrastructure, he said, would support growth and economic development while ensuring Verve cardholders are constantly rewarded for their loyalty.

Speaking on the recently concluded prize presentation ceremony, he encouraged cardholders to actively transact with their Verve cards to be amongst the 10 more lucky millionaires to emerge, 100 customers will also be winning a N200,000 worth of shopping spree, 200 customers can still win N20,000 each and thousands of customers will be enjoying cash-backs on their spends when they make transactions with their Verve cards.

“It is the “Ember Season”, and there will be less fret for Verve cardholders to think about the extra spending that comes with the season, because there are so many rewarding prizes up for grabs. It is time for Verve cardholders to get a shopping cart and clear out their Wishlist ahead of the holidays. For three consecutive years, Verve has continued to reward loyal cardholders through its National Consumer Promo and commits to innovative and value bound services at all times,” he said.

Verve had recently rewarded lucky winners in the Verve GoodLife Promo in partnership with First Bank, Zenith Bank, Ecobank, Union Bank, UBA, FCMB, Fidelity, and Access Bank. 10 customers have won N1 million each, 200 customers have won N20,000 each and thousands of customers have won cashbacks.

The GoodLife Promo 3.0 rewards Verve cardholders with exciting prizes and the more a customer transacts with their Verve cards, the more their chances of winning and getting rewarded for their loyalty.

At the recently concluded prize presentation ceremonies, Ayanwale Kayode – a Verve cardholder from FCMB Oshogbo won N1 million Naira and was exhilarated. Also, Evelyn James, a Zenith Bank Verve cardholder got presented with N1 million Naira in Lagos; as well as Mary Dunah, a UBA Verve cardholder, Abel Ovuri, a Union Bank Verve cardholder and Halima Osu, an Ecobank Verve cardholder who were all winners and present at the respective Banks for the prize presentation ceremonies.

Verve is geared towards exciting customers with the GoodLife experience while providing secure payments across different touch points, such as the Automated Teller Machines (ATMs), Point of Sale (POS) terminals and online/WEB platforms.

Promo now extends to January 6, 2023, and the more a customer Transacts with their Verve Card on POS, ATM or WEB, the more their chances of winning. New customers are encouraged to ask their Banks for a Verve card today or reactivate their expired Verve cards.

The Road Infrastructure Development and Refurbishment Investment Tax Credit Scheme is changing the funding for critical road construction.The scheme, built on a public-private partnership (PPP) intervention, enables the government to leverage private sector capital and efficiency for the construction, repairs, and maintenance of critical road infrastructure in key economic areas. Assistant Business Editor COLLINS NWEZE reviews the impact of tax credits in Nigeria’s infrastructure funding.

Financing Nigeria’s road networks is critical to opening up the grassroots and energising the economy.

Though Nigeria boasts of the largest road network in Africa, only about 60,000km of its estimated 195,000km road network is paved. Yet, some of them are in disrepair, poorly maintained or un-tarred.

To improve the road infrastructure and transportation, the Federal Government’s efforts introduced the Executive Order 007, which gave birth to  the Road Infrastructure Development and Refurbishment Investment Tax Credit Scheme.

Executive Order 007 empowers private companies to finance construction or refurbishment of federal roads designated as “Eligible Roads”. They are to recoup their investments through deduction of the approved costs expended on the project from their yearly Companies Income Tax (CIT).

The Road Infrastructure Scheme is a Public-Private Partnership (PPP) intervention that enables the Federal Government to leverage private sector capital and efficiency for the construction, refurbishment of critical road infrastructure in key economic areas.

The Federal Government says over 794kms of road have been priotised for construction through the scheme. Eleven states across the six geopolitical zones are to benefit from it.

Companies and agencies that had taken the advantage of the initiative include Unilever, Nigeria National Petroleum Corporation Limited (NNPC), Dangote Industries, Julius Berger, MTN, BUA Group of Companies, Access Bank, Transcorp, Lafarge and GZI Industries.

The NNPCL is also one of the companies that have keyed into the initiative as part of its Corporate Social Responsibility (CSR) projects.  It  had expressed interest to invest in the reconstruction of select federal roads to sustain a smooth supply and distribution of petroleum products across the country.

Few months after announcing the release of N621 billion to revamp selected roads, the company is planning to invest over N1 trillion.

In the first phase, the NNPCL was expected to construct 1,804.6 kilometres of roads worth N621.27 billion  with the Northcentral getting the highest chunk of N244.87 billion. The Southsouth emerged the second highest beneficiary of the NNPCL road projects worth N172.02 billion.

For instance, the 43km Obajana-Kabba road in Kogi was constructed by Dangote through the tax credit scheme.

The Southwest was allocated N81.87 billion; N56.12 billion allocation went to Northeast, while the Southeast has N43.28 billion allocation, the Northwest got N23.05 billion.

NNPCL Group Chief Executive, Mallam Mele Kyari, said during a tour of roads in the Northcentral and Southwest regions, the corporation would continue to support the government’s efforts at growing the economy.

The road tour was also witnessed by the Chief Executive of the Federal Inland Revenue Service (FIRS), Muhammad Nami and officials of the Ministry of Works and Housing.

Kyari assessed the reconstruction of 124.81-Km Bida-Lambata road in Niger State, and the Lagos-Badagry Expressway along the Agbara junction and Nigeria/Benin border.

Under the scheme, the road projects will be funded by NNPCL and the equivalent amount deducted by the FIRS from the national oil company’s tax obligations.

Through the scheme, the NNPCL will be serving as an enabler for building the economy and it is collaborating with key stakeholders such as the Ministry of Works and the FIRS on the execution of the initiative.

The company said this was in response to the plight faced by petroleum products marketers in transportation which affects nationwide distribution.

Kyari further stated that the NNPCL was taking cognisance of the importance of road infrastructure to the development of the economy, explaining that it is the reason it is investing in roads infrastructure.

According to Kyari, the quality of work was top-notch, adding that the consultants deployed during Buhari’s stint at the Petroleum Trust Fund (PTF), were handling the jobs.

“We are using the same consultants in partnership with the Federal Ministry of Works and the FIRS to make sure that this works for all of us and we can see from the quality of work. This is the best framework for delivering infrastructure in the country. We are funding partners. We are development partners and enablers. So, whatsoever the FIRS and the ministry of works approve for us, we will consider from our cash flow and fund them,” he assured.

The Director, Roads, Ministry of Works, Folorunso Esan, the NNPCL has increased the pace of the project from 10 per cent to about 40 per cent.

Lagos-based tax expert, Nnodim Ekene, described the programme as timely and capable of boosting the Federal Government’s quest to upscale infrastructure projects.

“The scheme is the best way to intervene and bridge Nigeria’s infrastructure gap,” he said.

The Nigeria Deposit Insurance Corporation (NDIC) is backing the  Africa Continental Free Trade Agreement (AfCFTA) implementation plan.

The agency said it would also  strenghten its intermediation role.

This is coming on the heels that the corporation resolved 248 complaints as well as helped bank depositors recover over 8.3 billion from their banks from January to last month.

NDIC Managing Director, Bello Hassan,  stated this at the International Trade Fair, Kano.

Bello, who was represented by Head of Communication and Public Enlightenment of the corporation, Bashir Nuhu, said the support  was geared at bolstering Nigeria’s confidence in the programme.

According to the Bello, the support was being done in collaboration with other safety-net players to keep the financial system safe.

He stressed the commitment of the corporation to play the role of intermediation in support of the implementation of the agreement, and effective management of the economy, as a whole.

“Further to the perfect organisation, the Chamber has once again demonstrated its commitment to supporting the government towards unleashing the nation’s economy through collaboration on key policies and programmes. This is demonstrated in the theme of the fair ‘ Unlocking AfCFTA for Nigeria Economic Growth and .”

” It is a delight that the theme equally resonates with the mandate, vision and mission of our corporation which centres on protecting depositors and contributing to the stability of the financial system. It’s no gainsaying that a safe, and stable financial system is a pivot on which the wheel of economic growth and development revolves.

“The NDIC, in collaboration with other safety-net players, will therefore continue to be resolutely committed to keeping the financial system safe and sound, not only to bolster confidence, but to strongly serve its role of intermediation in support of the AfCFTA implementation in particular, and the economy,” Bello stated.

In the same vein, the NDIC boss further disclosed the over N8.3 billion recovered for 248 complaints between January and last month, was an outcome of complaints on unauthorised withdrawals from banks.

The Large-scale Starch and Derivatives Producers Association (LSSDPA) has said Nigeria can earn $1 billion yearly from cassava derivatives and save the funds on imports.

Its Chairman, Rasheed Sarumi,  stated this during the inauguration  of the association in Lagos.

He said the LSSDPA, backed by the Central Bank of Nigeria (CBN), was created to provide starch and cassava derivatives to manufacturers.

Sarumi said the group has the task of getting starch and derivatives producers across regions to be part of the trade group and create maximum impact for the stakeholders and economy.

LSSDPA President, Mrs. Oluyemisi Iranloye, said Nigeria’s domestic production of cassava derivatives stands at 300,000 metric tons, but there was a plan to increase it to least 600,000 MT in five years.

She said the event, which attracted representatives from the CBN, banks, Nestle Nigeria, among others, was aimed at deepening domestic collaboration in the starch business and secure critical government backing for growth.

According to her, raising the production of cassava derivatives would help reduce the gap between supply-demand of cassava-based products, produce a revenue of at least N360 billion ($812 million) yearly, from about N180 billion ($406 million).

The group’s Board of Trustees was also inaugurated. It included Rasheed Olakanmi Sarumi as Chairman; Zainab Mustapha Jaji, Adewale Abiodun Raji and Iranloye.

Iranloye said increasing production would help the country save huge amount of forex, cut the reliance on cassava by-products and create new job opportunities for those at the grassroots.

Iranloye, who is the Chief Executive Officer of Psaltry International Company Limited, said:  “To generate a production output of 600,000 metric tons, we would need about three million metric tons of fresh cassava root planted annually on 170,000 hectares of land.

“That translates into an opportunity estimated to impact at least 10 million Nigerians in different host communities where the cassava derivatives producing factories are situated. Of course, the livelihoods of farm families will improve, boost rural development and reduce urban migration.

“Besides, the three million metric tons is just one-fourteenth of the estimated fresh root of cassava to be planted annually to meet the demand for cassava-based products, according to PwC. Therefore, this is a clarion call for decision-makers and the cassava value chain actors to synergise on enhancing the cassava value chain for the greater good of everyone.

“Manufacturing companies will have quick and easy access to premium quality cassava derivatives needed for their manufacturing process. In addition, hundreds of thousands of unemployed youths will be gainfully employed, stimulate rural development, alleviate poverty, enhance food security, provide clean energy and promote Nigeria’s industrialisation.”

Also, LSSDPA Secretary and Project Manager, Premier Plantations Limited, Boniface Iyen, said the formation of the group was the first step to boosting cassava derivatives production output,  and securing the needed policy guidance for industry growth.

He estimates that members have businesses that process at least 50 tons of cassava daily and and still growing.

Iranloye further described the inauguration of the association as a new dawn that would transform the cassava value chain, foster economic growth and help Nigeria meet its Sustainable Development Goals (SDGs).

“Most people regard cassava as the “new oil” but I tell you, “cassava excel oil.” The crop is in a league of its own. Cassava can be the bedrock of the economy if we can come together to harness its full economic potential.

“At present in Nigeria, there is domestic production of six cassava derivatives, which include starch, flour, ethanol, methanol, glucose and sorbitol. We can expand the value to encompass indigenous production of vitamin C, biodegradable plastics, formaldehyde, hydrochloric acid, sodium silicate and caustic soda.

“Also, we have gained success in streamlining the conversion of cassava wastes into animal feed, which studies show can replace corn in most animals’ diets. We can channel that same energy into biomass energy production, that is, conversion of agricultural wastes to energy, a massive potential area in which Nigeria needs to participate in its research and development.”

According to her, the cassava processing industry generates significant waste that could be converted to electricity and steam, thus creating clean energy for industries and thousands of homes.

Iranloye also revealed that with the biomass electrification, the sector could establish a carbon credit system to offset carbon emissions and sell carbon credits.

“Clearly, cassava is no longer a crop for self-consumption; it is a crop that can shoulder the Nigerian economy, imagine the growth of the economy if we can focus on the cassava value chain as regards improving access to finance, supporting cassava cultivation, increasing funding for agricultural development and research, and promoting domestic production of cassava-based products.

“Hence, the reason for founding the LSSDPA. The association aims to create a strong synergy between the cassava value chain actors and stakeholders towards growing the cassava value chain, reducing the gap between the supply-demand of cassava derivatives and the Nigerian GDP exponentially,” she stated.

Polaris Bank has reiterated its commitment to funding small businesses across different states in the country.

The Measuring Fees and Transparency in Nigeria’s Digital Financial services report has listed cost of financial services as a major barrier to access for price-sensitive consumers.

It said the case is more pronounced within marginalised, vulnerable, and lower-income segments of society.

In addition, any lack of transparency on product pricing, departures from regulated pricing and limits trust between customers and service providers

The report examined the compliance levels with existing fee structures, compliance with price transparency requirements, the reliability of transactions and the consistency of information available from customer service channels.

The report is highlighting a series of barriers that impact consumer trust in financial services.

According to the report, Nigeria’s digital financial services ecosystem has rapidly evolved over the last decade due to increased broadband and mobile penetration and digital payments, which boost financial access in urban, rural, and hard-to-reach areas across the country.

This progress provides underbanked populations with greater access to digital banking products, mobile payments, savings and credit facilities – transforming the financial inclusion landscape. However, between 2018 and 2020, financial exclusion in Nigeria decreased by only one percentage point, from 37 per cent in 2018 to 36 per cent in 2020.

“The cost of financial services remains a major barrier to access for price-sensitive consumers, especially within marginalised, vulnerable, and lower-income segments of society. In addition, any lack of transparency on product pricing, departures from regulated pricing and limits trust between customers and service providers,” it said.

A new collaboration between Innovations for Poverty Action (IPA) and the Inclusion for All initiative aims to address the challenges and understand the ease of accessing accurate price information from providers and their levels of compliance with the revised pricing guidelines.

Director, Consumer Protection Department, Central Bank of Nigeria (CBN), Mrs. Rashida Monguno, praised IPA and Inclusion for All for the study, saying:  “This groundbreaking research provides new evidence and insights on one of the most critical aspects of consumer protection which is pricing transparency.

“Consumers’ right to easily access and understand the cost of services they use is one of the most fundamental rights of consumers. The research provides a baseline for future audits and identifies several areas which require improvement. I trust that the results will be instrumental in exploring new conversations that will result in tangible changes in the digital financial services marketplace.”

The government regulator, the Central Bank of Nigeria (CBN), recognised the impact of product pricing on financial inclusion outcomes and reviewed pricing guidelines in 2019, issuing lowered pricing caps for electronic banking transactions effective January 2020. In addition, CBN encouraged financial service providers to restructure transaction fees and limits.

The action supports Nigeria’s digital financial services uptake, which increased during the covid-19 pandemic, where government responses such as lockdown restrictions led to the temporary closure of bank branches, reinforcing digital access.

Pan-african payment infrastructure, Kora, has identified the growing incidence of cyber crooks as the greatest nightmare of the ecosystem.

Its CEO, Dickson Nsofor, who spoke with The Nation at the Fintech Summit organised by TechPoint Africa in Lagos, however, said the firm remained committed to putting the right infrastructure in place to ensure seamless transactions on the platform and rendering services to the customers.

He said: “Cyber security is the worst nightmare of fintechs. For us at Kora, we believe in the banking strong regulatory style of control. So, you see, we are one of the few fintechs that have Payment Card Industry Data Security Standard (PCI DSS) down to level one, one of the highest in the world, and we have three different International Organisations for Standardisation (ISOs) now you have banks have just one ISO, some fintechs just have one but we have three different ISOs being audited by one of the best security companies in the world. We take security very seriously. The reason why banks have been around for 40, 50, 60 years in Nigeria is because they have figured out how to protect customers’ funds.”

He also said pushbacks from regulatory authorities continued to be a source of concern for the expansion of fintechs across the continent.

He said: “One of the major challenges, of course, is regulatory pushbacks. The Kenya experience was that we applied for a licence and our funds were held, after investigations were carried out, they found out that Kora actually did nothing wrong and the court ruled in our favour. So, it’s very possible to face a few of this type of situation as we expand across different countries in Africa. But I am certain that we will overcome all challenges. Our resolve has always been to keep our hands clean and enter every country with all the necessary licences that are required of us.”

Speaking on the relationship between fintechs and the traditional banking system, he said some people fall on the far left; they believe that fintechs will overtake and collapse banks and others are on the far right, these people are traditional bankers.

“Kora is however an interesting mix of young people with ideas to disrupt technology and an old system of compliance and IT risk analysis. We ensure that we bring both worlds together. The future of payments or finance in Africa will not be just building fintechs but building within the regulatory framework that already exists, just like what the banks have been able to do. So, a merger of this sort is the future of the rest of Africa.

“Kora is a payment infrastructure that is focused on connecting the African continent financially. We pride ourselves in building payments solutions that enable businesses to accept payment from anywhere in Africa, make payment to anywhere in Africa and to convert between currencies. We have been doing this for about four to five years now and we are happy that we have made quite significant impact on the market space in terms of payment

“We are a fintech company. We use technology to simplify finance which is what fintech is all about. Billions of dollars have passed through the system. We have the most crème de la crème merchants in Africa ranging from GIG, and many other well-known fintechs.”

•CBN banks on Revised National Financial Inclusion Strategy

 

World Bank report says 1.7 billion adults worldwide are unbanked with about 50 per cent of the unbanked people lead by women in poor households in rural areas or out of the workforce. The multilateral lender explains that financial inclusion gives individuals and businesses access to affordable financial products and services. For the Central Bank of Nigeria (CBN), achieving its 95 per cent financial inclusion target by 2024 will happen with the launch of its Revised National Financial Inclusion Strategy (NFIS 3.0) among other initiatives, writes COLLINS NWEZE.

Having access to a transaction account is a first step towards broader financial inclusion since a transaction account allows people to store money, and send and receive payments.

A transaction account serves as a gateway to other financial services, which is why ensuring that people worldwide can have access to a transaction account is the focus of the World Bank Group’s Universal Financial Access Initiative.

According to the report, financial access facilitates living, and helps families and businesses plan for everything from long-term goals to unexpected emergencies.

The World Bank explained that as accountholders, people are more likely to use other financial services such as credit and insurance, to start and expand businesses, invest in education or health, manage risk, and weather financial shocks, which can improve the overall quality of their lives.

“Great strides have been made toward financial inclusion and 1.2 billion adults worldwide have got access to an account since 2011. Today, 69 per cent of adults have an account,” the bank said.

In Nigeria, Central Bank (CBN) Governor, Godwin Emefiele, said Nigeria will attain 95 per cent financial inclusion by 2024.

Moving from access to account to account usage is the next step for countries where 80 per cent or more of the population have accounts. These countries relied on reforms, private sector innovation, and a push to open low-cost accounts, including mobile and digitally-enabled payments.

The gender gap in account ownership remains stuck at nine percentage points in developing countries, hindering women from being able to effectively control their financial lives.

The bank said that since 2010, more than 55 countries have made commitments to financial inclusion, and more than 60 have either launched or are developing a national strategy. When countries take a strategic approach and develop national financial inclusion strategies which bring together financial regulators, telecommunications, competition and education ministries, our research indicates that when countries institute a national financial inclusion strategy, they increase the pace and impact of reforms.

Financial needs are both global and local at the same time. While major financial institutions are interoperable on a global scale through systems like SWIFT, Visa, Mastercard, and others, local systems have evolved independently in different regions due to varying regulations, economic activity, and consumer behaviour.

Sadly, unequal access to technology and complex regulations are working against equitable financial access.

Even though bank account access has increased to 76 per cent of global adult population, there is clear inequality in the availability, cost, and quality of financial services worldwide. A report published by the African Development Bank shows less than half of the African countries covered have access to bank accounts, not to mention other financial services such as loans, insurance, investment, and savings products.

 

Way out with innovation, CBN’s support

Innovation inclusion is a key building block to financial inclusion. The World Bank said that  financial inclusion can be accelerated by the use of innovative technologies and the entry of technology-driven, non-traditional institutions. Traditional financial institutions have failed in improving financial inclusion, it’s time for tech to step in.

For the CBN,  the plan is to achieve its 95 per cent financial inclusion target by 2024, with the recent launch of its Revised National Financial Inclusion Strategy (NFIS 3.0) and some other important policy frameworks.

The bank listed the other initiatives to help ensure 95 per cent of Nigerians have access to financial services to include the National Strategy for Leveraging Agent Networks for Women’s Financial Inclusion; National Fintech Strategy; Nigeria Payments System Vision 2025 (PSV 2025); Nigerian Financial Services Maps (NFSMaps); the CBN Regulatory Sandbox as well as the Central Bank of Nigeria – Central Bank of Egypt Fintech Bridge.

According to CBN, “notwithstanding these successes, some of which were spurred by the COVID-19 pandemic, certain segments such as youth, rural dwellers, women, Northeast and Northwest regions and MSMEs/Farmers remain relatively excluded. Progress in credit, insurance and pensions have also been slow. These segments are the key target priority areas for the NFIS 3.0.

“Agent banking network growth was significant, increasing from 38,416 agents in December 2018 to 1.4 million by October 2022, primarily driven by the Shared Agent Network Expansion Facility (SANEF) initiative of the CBN and the Bankers Committee.’’

“This expansion of agent network is an important lever to expand the number of financial access points per 100,000 of the population – thereby boosting access to affordable financial services by those in the more dispersed rural areas and certain urban centers. The growth in agent networks which has been significant also in the North-East (67% in 2020) will be important for improving financial inclusion in the north.

“Whilst the 2022 A2F survey is being awaited, it is anticipated that the financial inclusion rate would have improved by another 5 percentage points, drawing on the momentum on Digital Financial Services spurred by COVID-19 pandemic, and leveraging the myriad of financial services solutions in the dynamic financial system.”

Furthermore, she listed future priorities for accelerating financial inclusion for the CBN to include consolidating interagency and policy – innovation collaboration; deepening digital financial services penetration in excluded segments through the e-Naira offline solution; enhancing and harmonising digital identity for financial inclusion; and leveraging NIN foundational ID for further financial inclusion.

“Financial inclusion is a strategic objective for the CBN given its mandate to promote price, monetary and financial stability. The role of financial inclusion in important in enhancing its financial stability and monetary policy effectiveness,” the bank said.