By: Hee-Dee Walenga
From 2-5 September, the financial world will gather in Namibia for the Alliance for Financial Inclusion (AFI) Global Policy Forum (GPF) under this year’s theme ‘Empowering Society, Enabling Growth.’
Namibia has been a member of the AFI since its inception in 2009.
Taking place in Swakopmund at the Strand Hotel, the forum, co-hosted by the Bank of Namibia, will see over 700 delegates, including central banks, finance ministers, technology innovators, and several other stakeholders from all over the world discuss policies and initiatives centred on financial inclusion. The attendance of President Netumbo Nandi-Ndaitwah has been confirmed as well.
Bank of Namibia Governor, Johannes Gawaxab, stated: “This moment underscores our steadfast commitment to championing financial inclusion in Namibia. We eagerly anticipate welcoming the global community to Namibia and showcasing our dedication to making financial services available to all. This is a significant milestone for our nation.”
Speaking on Eagle FM’s Financially Included programme, Bank of Namibia Principal Economist and Financial Inclusion Policy Specialist, Sesilia Nekwaya-Okafor, defined financial inclusion as “making sure that every Namibian has access to financial services in an affordable, reliable, and convenient manner.”
Nekwaya-Okafor also emphasised the importance of Namibia hosting this global event. She stated that it is an opportunity for Namibia to gain international visibility and position itself as a leader in the financial inclusion space, especially in the SADC region.
“It is also an opportunity for us to be open about the challenges we are facing and receive that narrow & focused guidance from global experts. We are looking at opportunities where our financial service providers will be able to forge international partnerships and gain the support they need, especially from a product development point of view,” Nekwaya-Okafor added.
FNB Namibia’s Head of SME Banking, Nesdha De Jongh, defined financial inclusion as the ability for an SME to receive the same financial services as a larger business. De Jongh stated that the lessons Namibia can learn and implement from the global attendees are crucial.
FNB Namibia is one of the main stakeholders of the forum. “Everything we do is centred around our customers. The reason we became a partner is for our customers’ benefit. Ultimately, the more financially included our customers become, the easier it makes it for them to use our digital channels and move away from the conventional methods of doing banking,” said De Jongh.
Similarly to Nekwaya-Okafor, De Jongh has pinpointed digitalisation as a key tool for Namibians as a whole to become financially included.
Tune into Financially Included every Monday, Wednesday and Friday at 18:00 on Eagle FM. Financially Included is brought to you by FNB Namibia. Listen to past editions here.
