Uganda has expanded the number of bank accounts from 6 million six years ago to 24 million, reflecting its efforts to enhance financial inclusion.
🇺🇬 Financial Inclusion in Uganda has quadrupled in just 6 years from 6 million bank accounts to over 24 million – Uganda Bankers Association @ugbankers pic.twitter.com/scXIPSrTCQ
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This is according to Wibrod Humphreys Owor, Executive Director, Uganda Bankers Association (UBA) who in a recent interview, revealed that the country has made significant progress by establishing new channels and simplifying the national identity process.
“We have under 1,000 branches, today we have over 30,000 bank agents and 472,000 agents around the world.” noted Owor.
Additionally, the country has developed national payments system regulations. Uganda is currently in the second phase of its efforts with the objectives of introducing more financial products, enhancing consumer protection, addressing gender and youth-related financial issues, and fostering the growth of the green finance market.
Uganda has also formulated a national financial inclusion strategy for the period 2017-2022. This plan comprises various key pillars such as enhancing infrastructure, digital assets, and essential credit infrastructure, as well as empowering the population through digital literacy initiatives.
“Fintechs have broken barriers, they have enabled institutions to deliver services 24/7,” said Dr Owor.
Owor added that while Uganda has been conservative in this public borrowing.
“If Eurobonds are not well managed, countries can find themselves in big problems. Uganda is conservative when it comes to government borrowing.”
Nonetheless, Uganda still deals with cultural and religious perceptions that exist at the micro-level, and this impacts on the country’s financial and digital literacy levels.
Owor emphasized that achieving financial inclusion is a collective effort, involving participation from various sectors, including public sector entities, the private sector, and fintech companies. Financial inclusion is considered a crucial development indicator, and there is still much work to be done in this regard.
On a whole, he noted the impressive growth in fiancial inclusion across the East Africa region. Financial Inclusion in East Africa is on the right track as shown below:
- Kenya is at 84%
- Rwanda has moved from 77% to 83%
- Tanzania is at 66%
- Uganda has moved from 54% to 58%
See full interview below:
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