WHEN was the last time you really planned your finances a few months ahead? Recently? Maybe not. The honest truth for most of us urbanites is that we rarely do, and yet for the most part, we have the privilege and access to the tools to do so.
Report by Clive Mphambela
It is true that most of us in the cities and towns, have access to the basic tools of financial planning in the form of services provided by banks and insurance companies where their offices are mainly located and whether we use them becomes a matter of choice.
However, most of our citizens, particularly those in the more remote parts of our country, remain financially excluded.
Addressing the financial exclusion challenge has become the pre-occupation of the banks, regulators and the government.
Surely we must face this challenge and the key role players in addressing this as identified in our previous wrings are government, financial institutions, regulators and the people themselves.
Fortunately, financial inclusion is fast emerging as a priority area for Zimbabwean policymakers and regulators as part of a broader agenda for financial sector development.
There is an increasing level of discourse, led by the banking industry in Zimbabwe for all stakeholders to work towards introducing comprehensive measures to improve access to and usage of formal, but well tailored financial services, informed and this strategy is underpinned by a fast-growing body of experience and knowledge.
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Luckily for us in Zimbabwe, while we have our own unique circumstance we do not have to reinvent the wheel in most respects. We can learn and borrow from the experiences of more than 60 other countries have initiated financial inclusion reforms in recent years.
The growing priority placed on financial inclusion followed the commitments made by financial regulators from 35 developing countries to financial inclusion and to financial education under the Maya Declaration during the Alliance for Financial Inclusion’s 2011 Global Policy Forum held in Mexico.
Previously, the G20 leaders had also committed to improve access to financial services at the Pittsburgh Summit in November 2009, and a Financial Inclusion Experts Group (FIEG) was created to expand access to finance for household consumers and micro, small-, and medium-sized enterprises.
The FIEG developed the nine Principles for Innovative Financial Inclusion, which were endorsed during the Toronto Summit in June 2010. These nine principles, derived from the experiences and lessons learned from policymakers throughout the world, underpin the Financial Inclusion Action Plan endorsed at the Korea Summit in November 2010, which called for the creation of the Global Partnership for Financial Inclusion as the mechanism to execute the G20 commitment.
These principles for innovative financial inclusion derive from the experiences and lessons learned from policymakers throughout the world, especially leaders from developing countries.
Leadership — We must cultivate a broad-based government commitment to financial inclusion to help alleviate poverty.
Diversity — We must implement policy approaches that promote competition and provide market-based incentives for delivery of sustainable financial access and usage of a broad range of affordable services (savings, credit, payments and transfers, insurance) as well as a diversity of service providers.
Innovation — We must promote technological and institutional innovation as a means to expand financial system access and usage, including by addressing current infrastructure weaknesses.
Protection — We must encourage a comprehensive approach to consumer protection that recognises the roles of government, financial services providers and consumers.
Empowerment — We must develop and engender financial literacy and financial capability among citizens. We must start financial education at an early age and where possible, financial education and entrepreneurship must be made a part of the national education curriculum spanning primary, secondary and tertiary education sectors.
Co-operation — We should create an institutional environment with clear lines of accountability and co-ordination within government and also encourage partnerships and direct consultation across government, business and all other stakeholders.
Knowledge — We should utilise modern research tools and the improved data provided to make evidence based policy, measure progress, and consider an incremental “test and learn” approach acceptable to both regulators and service providers.
This allows for regulators to allow products into the market on a test basis and then craft regulations around the product as issues arise and emerge. Such an approach promotes innovation and speeds up the process of financial inclusion.
Proportionality — We should build a policy and regulatory framework that is proportionate with the risks and benefits involved in such innovative products and services and is based on an understanding of the gaps and barriers in existing regulation. In simpler terms let us not fit first world regulatory frameworks on a developing financial sector which may stifle growth.
Regulatory Framework — However, we should still consider that the adopted regulatory framework, should still reflect international standards, being sensitive to national circumstances and balance the need to support a local development agenda whilst maintaining a sufficiently healthy but competitive landscape.
Therefore, an appropriate, flexible, risk-based Anti-Money Laundering and Combating the Financing of Terrorism regime outlining; the conditions for the use of agents as a customer interface; a clear regulatory regime for electronically stored value; and market-based incentives to achieve the long-term goal of broad interoperability and interconnection is paramount.
The above principles are a reflection of the conditions conducive to spurring innovation for financial inclusion while protecting financial stability and consumers. They are not a rigid set of requirements, but are designed to help guide policymakers in the decision making process. They are flexible enough so they can be adapted to different country contexts.
Driving financial inclusiveness is clearly on the global agenda and we in Zimbabwe cannot be left behind. The road map for financial inclusion at the global level has followed a rapid evolution which in Zimbabwe we must embrace and turn into a revolution if we are to drive domestic savings growth, and create a sustainable financial services sector.
Clive Mphambela is a banker and financial advisor. He writes in his capacity as advocacy officer for the Bankers’ Association of Zimbabwe. He can be reached on 04-744686, 0772 206 913, or [email protected]
