By: Hee-Dee Walenga
Namibia successfully hosted the Alliance for Financial Inclusion (AFI) Global Policy Forum in Swakopmund throughout last week. The forum facilitated global discussions, whilst stimulating the Namibian economy.
One such example of this stimulation was how 27 hotels were fully booked for the forum.
The event, co-hosted by AFI and the Bank of Namibia, facilitated dialogues on various issues, including inclusive green financing, digital financial services, and economic growth through gender inclusive financing.
One theme in particular was prominent throughout the four-day forum: Africa’s usage of mobile money to increase financial inclusion. Africa accounted for two thirds (66%) of global mobile money transactions that totalled over $1 trillion in 2024.
In a keynote address at the forum, FNB Namibia Retail CEO Nangula Kauluma stated that FNB’s eWallet service has over 8 million users across the continent.
Governor of the National Bank of Rwanda, Soraya Munyana Hakuziyaremye, stated that 92% of the adult population and 88% of the forcibly displaced population has access to a mobile wallet. The east African country has deployed ‘digital ambassadors’ in every region of the country to bridge the digital literacy gap around the country. Hakuziyaremye stated that digital literacy is a crucial building block in teaching financial literacy to the population.
Digitalisation and the interoperability of digital solutions as a whole was another prominent theme during the forum. Temitope Akin-Fadeyi, Assistant Director at the Central Bank of Nigeria, stated that the bank has focused on real-time payments, digital identification, and alternative data sources to assist MSMEs in the country to leverage digital tools.
The top three finalists of the 2025 Fintech Showcase included African products. The winner of the showcase was Affinity Africa, a Ghanaian-born digital banking platform that provides financial services to underserved and unbanked individuals, as well as MSMEs.
Finishing in third at the showcase was Shop Okoa, a digital credit service based in Kenya. The Bank of Tanzania won the Nestor Espenilla Jr Financial Inclusion Award, which is an award that honours member institutions for their innovative use of technology to advance financial inclusion.
On a local level, several financial institutions have rolled out mobile payment solutions. Letshego Namibia, in collaboration with MTC Maris, recently launched the Taamba Maris product, Namibia’s first instant mobile credit product.
Standard Bank Namibia has had PayPulse since 2018, and Nedbank Namibia rolled out PayToday in 2017, reintroducing it at the recent Nedbank Future of Business Conference.
The true level of adoption of these services remains to be seen in Namibia.
