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State reinforces tech to boost financial inclusion

THE government is putting a strong emphasis on adoption of technologies to boost financial inclusion, especially amongst the youths and women, the Minister for Community Development, Gender, Women and Special Groups, Dr Dorothy Gwajima said.

DAR ES SALAAM: THE government is putting a strong emphasis on adoption of technologies to boost financial inclusion, especially amongst the youths and women, the Minister for Community Development, Gender, Women and Special Groups, Dr Dorothy Gwajima said.

According to Bank of Tanzania (BOT) the landscape of financial inclusion in Tanzania shows that recently the country has witnessed a remarkable transformation in the financial sector, leveraging the rapid growth of the adoption of technologies in developing and distributing financial services and products.

Despite these developments, the adult population’s access to and usage of formal financial services remain unevenly distributed across the country.

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To address this, Tanzania embarked on a national collaborative approach between the public and private sector in advancing policies and innovative financial solutions, which expand outreach to unserved and underserved communities in the country.

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Speaking in Dar es Salaam on Monday, while gracing the launch of ‘Mwanamke plus’- a special window designed by Equity Bank to provide financial services to women, Dr Gwajima said the government is still pushing for the use of digital technology to promote financial inclusion.

“The government continues to emphasise the use of digital technology in the provision of financial services to reach a large number of people, who do not currently have access to formal financial services,” she pointed out.

However, she added that despite the transformation made in the financial sector, the work to perform is still to ensure majority of youths and women, especially in rural areas have access to formal financial services.

According to the FinScope Survey 2023 results, the level of access and use of formal financial services increased to 89 per cent and 76 per cent in 2023 from 86 per cent and 65 per cent in 2017, respectively.

However, despite the success, the level of exclusion remains high for the population segments such as those in rural areas, smallholder farmers, youths and women.

On the ‘women plus’, Dr Gwajima said the window will motivate many women to participate in economic activities, thus affording the cost of living and contribute to the national GDP.

In particular, she added that the government under President Dr Samia Suluhu Hassan recognises and appreciates the contribution of improving financial services for all citizens.

“This launch of a special window for women in Equity Bank is one of the strategies to empower women as outlined in the 2023 National Gender and Women’s Development Policy,” Dr Gwajima pointed out.

In a related development, she noted that in recognition of the government’s efforts in promoting financial inclusion, Equity Bank has set aside 154.9bn/- as loans for SMEs, especially women.

She continues adding that granting of loans will increase the number of beneficiaries from the current 26 per cent to 50 per cent for the fiscal year 2024–2025.

For her part, Managing Director Equity Bank Tanzania, Ms Isabela Maganga said apart from providing loans at affordable costs to women, mwanamke plus will provide training prograame on business management skills and financial literacy.

She added that according to research conducted by the bank; there is still a gap in financial literacy. She stated that more than 30 per cent of womenowned small and mediumsized businesses (SMEs), who make up 54 per cent of the total, had not received financial services education.