…Seek direct involvement in mobile money sub sector
Umbrella body of all the main network operators (MNOs), the Association of Licensed Telecommunications Operators of Nigeria (ALTON) has drawn a fresh roadmap that will catapult financial inclusion to 90 million Nigerians by year 2020 if government is able to provide level playing field for MNOs to participate fully in the Mobile Money Industry.
Business Hilights gathered that Nigeria’s largest GSM operators including Globacom, 9Mobile, Airtel & MTN Nigeria came together on Tuesday this week to clearly articulate their commitment to deepening financial inclusion and providing Nigerians with access to a range of affordable financial services.
It would be recalled that following the issuance of Nigeria’s first mobile money licences in 2009, the journey towards financial inclusion has been slow. Current financial exclusion levels stand at over 40%. There is a significant gap to be covered in order to meet Nigeria’s target of 20% financial exclusion by 2020.
However, the federal government through the regulatory frameworks of the Nigerian Communications Commission (NCC) and even the apex bank had excluded MNOs from accessing mobile money licences directly under their current guidelines.
But in other African climes and mostly all the sub-saharan African markets where mobile money is successful, Telco’s are given a level playing field.
The roadmap meeting was facilitated by Yinka David-West, Academic Director and Senior Fellow at Lagos Business School who argued that “Far beyond financial inclusion rates in Nigeria, we also have to examine how people currently considered to have access to financial services stack up when evaluated against the criteria for true financial inclusion, i.e. access to a full suite of quality financial services, provided at affordable prices, in a convenient manner. When evaluated against this definition, it is clear that as a country, we have to work, not just to drastically increase the number of financially included persons, but also to increase the quality of inclusion and access we give, especially if we hope to positively impact the economy and the quality of the lives of Nigerians in any meaningful way.”
According to the marshaled roadmap by the MNOs, “By the 6th month, we commit to bringing access to financial services to 15million customers, serviced by 100,000 agents; By the 12th month, we commit to bringing access to financial services to 35 million Nigerians serviced by 250,000 agents; and by the 24th month, we commit to bringing access to financial services to 70 million Nigerians, serviced by 600,000 agents.
Continuing, the telecoms operators added that “By the 30th month deadline we have given ourselves, we commit to bringing access to financial services to 90 million customers, also serviced by 600,000 agents; and “We also commit to deepening financial literacy across the country through a financial inclusion secretariat within the Association of Licensed Telecommunications Operators of Nigeria (ALTON)”.
Chairman of ALTON, Gbenga Adebayo, who signed the Communiqué recalled that “According to Mckinsey, as a direct result of increasing financial inclusion rates, Nigeria could realise as much as a 12.4% boost in GDP, the creation of 3 million new jobs, $2 billion reduction in government leakages and $57 billion in new credit for small and medium scale enterprises over a four-year period.
“The Telco’s proposed intervention will not only give customers access to a variety of affordable financial products and services, but also deliver 1,000,000 direct jobs in addition to the other benefits identified by the McKinsey report. Opening up the Digital Financial Services sector can be the basis for transformative change in the structure and sustainability of growth in the Nigerian economy.
“We acknowledge the concrete commitments the industry has made towards delivering access to financial services today as well as their commitment to financial literacy which while vital, cannot happen in isolation of the Telco’s. This integrated approach, if allowed to, will deliver long term solutions and tangible impact,” ALTON assured.
