Karachi: State Bank of Pakistan Governor Jamil Ahmed on Monday reiterated the central bank’s commitment to increasing financial inclusion by enhancing collaboration with global and local stakeholders.
The Governor of SBP, in his meeting with CEO of the Alliance for Financial Inclusion (AFI), Dr. Alfred Hannig, here, highlighted SBP’s recently launched third edition of the National Financial Inclusion Strategy (NFIS) 2024-28 and stressed that SBP will continue to Implementing it A statement issued here stated that efforts are being made to enhance financial inclusion through digitization and reduce the gender gap in the field of finance.
Dr. Hanig expressed AFI’s appreciation for the leadership role played by SBP in promoting financial inclusion in Pakistan and discussed areas of mutual cooperation to continue efforts towards breaking down barriers. SBP has been a founding member of AFI since 2008, a policy leadership coalition bringing together central banks and financial regulatory institutions from 84 countries with the common goal of promoting financial inclusion at country, regional and international levels. SBP currently serves on the AFI Board of Directors, and is Vice-Chair of the AFI Gender Inclusive Finance and South Asia Regional Financial Inclusion Committee.
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Jamil Ahmed expressed appreciation for AFI’s support and longstanding partnership with SBP, which facilitated peer-to-peer learning exchanges and capacity building opportunities for SBP officials in developing and implementing evidence-based financial inclusion policies.
In his speech, Dr. Hanig highlighted the critical and progressive need to strengthen the capacity of regulators in the South Asian region to achieve impactful financial inclusion policy goals and emphasized that implementation must be balanced with effective cybersecurity resilience and consumer protection.
The meeting also explored opportunities to enhance institutional cooperation in the areas of digital payments, financial literacy, sustainable finance, and MSME financing. The two parties resolved to continue efforts to improve the financial health and well-being of the masses, especially the unbanked and unbanked segments of the population.
SBP also organized a discussion for Dr. Hanig with financial inclusion stakeholders including presidents and CEOs of banks, representatives of the Pakistan Banks Association, Pakistan Microfinance Network, FinTech Association and Network and senior management of the Pakistan Bank of Pakistan.
During the session, the National Financial Inclusion Strategy 2024-28 was presented along with the financial inclusion targets of the State Bank of Pakistan for the next four years. An interactive discussion followed, where industry participants shared grassroots level insights and key challenges in expanding access to financial services, while the AFI shared its perspective based on global best practices. The forum agreed to enhance cooperation between local stakeholders and international organizations to improve knowledge exchange on emerging trends in financial inclusion.
The visit concluded with a tour of the SBP Museum, where Dr. Hanig expressed his appreciation for the cultural heritage and preservation of SBP’s history and the evolution of Pakistan’s money over time.