The autumn meetings of the World Bank and the International Monetary Fund are the perfect backdrop for a fresh conversation about growing digital payment networks as a way to foster financial literacy, inclusion, and sustained economic development.
The facts remain startling: using World Bank data from 2012, 2.5 billion people in the world were reported as having no account with a formal financial institution, most of them living in developing countries. Women are more likely than men to be excluded - only 37% have an account, which is an entry-point to safe, secure and seamless transactions.
We know that access to financial services plays a critical role in economic growth and reducing inequalities. To provide those services, it is critical to examine the emerging network of payment technologies and financial services we are championing in poor communities. We must look at how they are governed, and what mechanisms are in place to ensure that consumers trust these systems and know how to use them.
The Guardian Global Development Professionals Network will host this morning seminar, in association with Visa, and you are invited to attend for free. A panel of speakers will cover the following topics:
New models for reaching women and other excluded populations
Opportunities, barriers, and potential for adverse consequences with new initiatives
Policies for consumer protection
Reaching the most remote communities
Panel
Eliza Anyangwe, editor of the Global Development Professionals Network (panel chair)
Martha Brantley, director of business development, Clinton Development Initiative
Leora Klapper, lead economist, Development Research Group, World Bank
Stephen Kehoe, senior vice president and head of Global Financial Inclusion, Visa Inc.
Cathleen Tobin, manager, Financial Education and Social Communications Women’s World Banking
Martin Holtmann, head of microfinance group, IFC
Space is limited and priority will be given to individuals with relevant experience or research interests in financial inclusion.
Registration for the event has now closed.
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