Remittances are an essential source of income for millions of people around the world. The touchpoints with customers on both ends of the sending-receiving transaction, especially if digital, present an opportunity to expand access to other financial services such as savings, credit, insurance, and pensions, bolstering financial health and resilience to setbacks for migrants and their families.
Research conducted by UNCDF demonstrates that there is demand among remittance customers for additional financial services. This webinar will present such findings from the UNCDF partnership with the KIT Royal Tropical Institute (KIT) for conducting demand-side research to inform the development of inclusive digital remittance solutions and innovation in financial services for migrants and their families. As part of the research, the financial needs and preferences of more than 3,000 remittance-sending migrants and their remittance-receiving family members—comprising customers from UNCDF private sector partners—were assessed to estimate the trends, patterns, and barriers in the access to and usage of digital remittances and other financial products. The financial resilience outcomes of remittance senders and recipients were also investigated in the research study, with a particular focus on gender.
As part of the research, in partnership with Butterfly Works and Aflatoun, KIT assessed the financial needs and preferences of more than 3,000 remittance-sending migrants and their remittance-receiving family members. Through analytical research reports, insights validation workshops, and concept distillation workshops, they supported the commercial and development objectives of seven UNCDF private sector partners—Lucy (Singapore), BRAC Bank (Bangladesh), RAKBANK (United Arab Emirates), IME (Nepal), SentBe (Republic of South Korea), Lion Bank (Ethiopia), Wizall Money (Senegal)—using evidence-based customer insights.
The webinar also features eminent panellists who will share practical examples from their organizations’ experience in introducing remittance-linked financial services.
We will be hosting the webinar on: 14 March 2023, 7 a.m. – 8 a.m. EST.
How to join?
Please use the above registration link to register. After you register, you will receive an email confirmation and will be able to add the event to your calendars.
Speakers
Presenter: Marup Hossain PhD, Impact Assessment and Analytics Specialist, UNCDF
Moderator: Julie Kamau, Gender and Research Analyst, UNCDF
Panellists:
- Md Sabbir Hossain, Deputy Managing Director and Chief Operating Officer, BRAC Bank
- Arianna Zapanta, Research Manager, Innovations for Poverty Action
- Rajarshi Dutta Barua, Senior Manager, MicroSave Consulting
Agenda
- Welcome note (5 minutes)
- Key insights from the demand-side research presentation (15 minutes)
- Panel discussion (30 minutes)
- Q&A (10 minutes)
Duration: 60 minutes