Remittances and Financial Inclusion: Leveraging the Inclusive Innovation Framework to Drive the Flow of Formal Remittances to Ethiopia

Webinar

19 October 2022

Zoom

The webinar explored the state of migrant-centric, gender-responsive remittances and financial services in Ethiopia, coinciding with the publication of the Inclusive Innovation Country Assessment report for Ethiopia.The presentation was a culmination of an extensive research and consultation process involving stakeholder interviews, secondary research, and collaborations with the private sector for a comprehensive understanding of the commercial viability and inclusivity of remittance-related innovations that can offer financial products and services that are trusted and valued by migrants and their families, helping further deepen the financial sector in Ethiopia.

Building on the Migrant Money experience over the last few years, UNCDF and Haske Conseil have developed a migrant-centric and gender-responsive framework to guide the inclusive innovation strategies of Remittance Service Providers (RSPs). The framework provides a template for assessing the remittance ecosystem and value-chain in a particular country; a ‘how to’ guide to inclusive innovation within the specific context of digital remittances and remittance-linked financial products; and a template for drafting country-specific roadmaps for leveraging innovation in the remittance ecosystem through financial and technical support. The framework has been applied in four countries to create country-specific strategies for Nepal, Bangladesh, Ethiopia, and Senegal.

This webinar will explore the state of migrant-centric, gender-responsive remittances and financial services in Ethiopia. It will offer a common platform and present an opportunity for all key stakeholders to come together and deliberate on the following:

How can the National Financial Inclusion Strategy 2021 and the Home-Grown Economic Reforms implementation leverage the inclusive innovation framework to achieve an impact on remittances and financial inclusion?
How can the inclusive innovation framework help drive the implementation of the National Digital Transformation Strategy, “Digital Ethiopia 2025,” for greater financial inclusion?
What support should be given to financial institutions and remittance service providers to take advantage of the new opportunities and enablers within the financial sector in Ethiopia? i.e., New directives and amendments on agent banking; financial institution branch opening; Payments Operators and Issuers’ Licensing, and Financial Consumer Protection, among others
What are some key recommendations from the Ethiopia Country Assessment Report that can be driven by the financial institutions and remittance service providers to deepen financial inclusion?
What support is required from NBE and the government to help the private sector remittance players increase outreach to underserved migrants and their families?

Agenda

Welcome note and logistics
Opening remarks: Patricia Barandun, Head of Thematic Section Migration and Forced Displacement, Swiss Agency for Development and Cooperation
Introduction to UNCDF and the Migrant Money Programme
Ethiopia Inclusive Innovation Country Assessment presentation
Q&A session
Panel discussion: National Bank of Ethiopia | Thunes | Kacha Digital Financial Service S.C. | FSD Ethiopia
Q&A session
Closing remarks