Experts Identify Gaps In Financial Inclusion Initiative Implementation, Suggest Way Forward

L – R. Mr Oluwatoyin Isaac from Centre of Citizens with Disability (CCD); Mrs Freda Ruth Bruce – Bennet, Director, Nigeria Communications Commission (NCC); Maureen Chigbo, President, Guilds of Corporate Online Publishers (GOCOP); Mr Ogie Eboigbe Chairman, Contemporary Architecture Limited; Yemisi Izuora , Editor, Oriental News, Dr Uju Ogubunka, Chairman Bank Customers Association of Nigeria and Conference Chairman; Mrs Adeola Ekine, Chairperson, National Association of Women Journalists (NAWOJ) Lagos State Chapter; Mr Rasaaq Salami, Deputy Director/ Head Corporate Communications/ Market Development of NAICOM; Mrs Sa’adatu Faruk, Head Financial Inclusion Division/Market Development Department, Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC); Mr Rotimi Olubi, MD/CEO ARM Securities and the Conference Guest Speaker, at the Inaugural Conference on Financial Inclusion organized by Oriental News Nigeria Online in Lagos

Experts in the nation’s financial sector said much still need to be done on the implementation of the Central Bank of Nigeria (CBN) Financial inclusion initiative for it to be successful.

Experts who spoke at the inaugural conference of Oriental News
Nigeria with theme “Engaging with critical groups to develop effective
financial inclusion initiative” which held on Thursday at the Sheraton
hotel Ikeja Lagos, said the financial inclusion initiative is yet to
achieve its purpose and suggested the way forward.

The Chief Executive Officer of Bank Customers Association of Nigeria
(BCAN), Dr Uju Ogubunka, stated that the financial inclusion policy of
the federal government which commenced in 2012 was geared towards
ensuring that no Nigerian is short changed in its financial
intermediations policies and economic development plans.

Ogubunka said that the government then out of the 84 percent
financially excluded population, targeted to achieve 20 percent
financial inclusion by year 2020.

“The adult population has now increased above 84 percent and the un
banked population has also increased remarkably. If the people are
outside the financial system, the economy will not develop” Ogubunka
stated.

He explained that financial inclusion commences with opening bank
account, which factors in the account holder towards benefiting from
all forms of government’s financial support as the account drives all
other transactions of the account holder.

Also, to have insurance policy, investment accounts in the capital
market, pension account and all forms of life and business enabling
transactions driven only by the nation’s financial system, you need to
be financially included, he stressed.

“As some of us will remember, the CBN initiated the National Financial
Inclusion Programme in year 2012 that is, about a decade ago. The
Programme is kind of a response to the discovery from a study in 2010
that about 39.2 million or 46.3% of the then 84.7 million adult
populations in the country were excluded from the formal Nigerian
Financial System.

“That meant that 45.5 million or 53.7% of the 84.7 million were
included in the system. It was also noted that of the excluded 39.2
million adult Nigerians, about 21.3 million or 54.4% were females;
meaning that about 17.9 million (i.e. 45.6%) were males. So, females
accounted for a higher number and percentage of the excluded than
males. On the other hand, males accounted for a higher number and
percentage of those included in the Nigerian Financial System.” he
stated.

Ogubunka, pointed out that the above situations were identified to
have negative/adverse consequences/implications for the financial
system and the economy, especially as almost half of the financial
resources in the country were in the hands of people operating outside
the formal financial system.

He said, “Consequent on the foregoing, the CBN saw the need to
redress it. Thus, it floated the Financial Inclusion programme and
supported it with a Strategy Document tagged ”National Financial
Inclusion Strategy” that encapsulated, among many other things, the
Strategy Objectives, Strategy Stakeholders and their Interests, and
Key Financial Inclusion Targets.

‘’The initiative targeted a reduction of the rate of the excluded from
46.3% to 20% come year 2020. ( i.e. a reduction of 26.3%), meaning
that the percentage of the included would rise to 80% from 53.7%
within the same period.”

He said, ‘’Stanmeg Communication publishers of Oriental News, Nigeria,
have provided this platform for the audience here gathered to
brainstorm and contribute towards achieving total inclusion of all
eligible adult Nigerians in the Financial System in order to drive and
attain higher growth and development in both the Financial System and
the National Economy, for the benefit of all Nigerians.

“I am impressed with this provided opportunity and therefore
Congratulate the Organisers for their initiative which is worthy of
emulation. By this, they have shown that they are concerned and
serious minded stakeholders in the Nigerian Financial System and of
colours, the economy.”

The guest speaker, Mallam Garba Kurfi, Managing Director APT
Securities and Fubds Limited buttressed that financial inclusion
policy of the government helps to ensures that funds that could have
been deployed for entrepreneurial initiatives don’t end up in
cupboards at homes.

Managing Director/CEO Arms Securities Limited, Mr Rotimi Edu,
representing Mallam Kurfi, in his presentation said that the
government is recording remarkable progress in the financial inclusion
target, adding more hands are on deck to ensure that economic
advantage of the country’s large population translates to financial
benefits to the people and institutions.

The government, he stated has designed financial support initiatives
for rural women, artisans, petty traders, the financially
disadvantaged, which can only be extended to only people who operates
bank accounts.

He said that funds are aggregated through savings in banks,
investments in capital market or taking policies in insurance
companies, such funds are further deployed to catalyze economic
development through lending or for institutional growth.

Executive Director, Centre for Citizens with Disability (CCD) David O.
Anyaele however called on the federal government as well as the
Central bank of Nigeria (CBN) to expand the nation’s financial
inclusion policy to include provisioning for the disabled people in
the society.

He bemoaned the sustained lack of considerations for the disabled in
the Nigerian financial system through different kinds of neglect and
rights denials.

Anyaele stated that audit of bank branches across the country showed
the total absence or lack of access and convenience facilities for
the disabled.

He admonished prevailing attitudes of the financial systems against
the disabled, describing it as major institutional barrier to
financial inclusion

Earlier in her opening address, Editor Oriental News Nigeria , Mrs
Yemisi Izuora said that the conference was conceived by Stanmeg
Communications, publishers of Oriental News Nigeria after a pain
staking study the progress and prospects of the financial inclusion
policy in the country since inception in 2012.

“ The conference is being organised given that the past couple of
years , the federal government and stakeholders in the financial
sector have had to deal with expanding financial services tp large
community of underserved pupulation and dealing with resilience
challenges brought about by confluence of events that have taken
place” Izuora stated.