East African emerging economy, Tanzania has hit 62 per cent in financial inclusion. According to leading MicroFinance Bank, FINCA, the platform got to the height through massive awareness in FinTech innovation.
According to the 2014–2016 Tanzania National Financial Inclusion Framework, the level of formal financial access in the rural areas of Tanzania is 8.5% compared to 23% in the urban areas and totally excluded rural population is 60% compared to 45% in urban areas.
Details from the ninth edition of the Tanzanian Economic Update made available to Business Hilights, highlighted the country’s extraordinary progress in bringing financial services to 62% of its population today compared to 11% in 2006, making it a regional leader in the use of digital financial services and putting it on a solid footing to achieve Universal Financial Access by 2020
Currently, hundreds of thousands of low-income people have gained access to financial products including credit, savings and money transfers through leveraging of technology to bring financial services closer to the unbanked.
Despite these significant developments, full financial sector integration continues to elude Tanzania, and the argument is that to promote and sustain financial inclusion growth there must be mobilization of savings to allocate them to households, businesses, and government for productive investments.
FINCA Microfinance Bank believes that for markets to work well and correctly, every customer is entitled to fairly priced and transparent financial products—along with information to empower them to make educated decision for their financial future.
Issa Ngwegwe, FINCA Tanzania, Managing Director said “We recently launched HaloYako, an innovative mobile savings account that is easy to use, convenient to access, free from fees and tailored for low-income business owners for their future investments.”
The bank is currently running an awareness campaign showcasing the importance of saving and educating customers on how the new technology works.
Continuing, he said with this service customers can open a savings account from their mobile phones in less than five minutes without leaving their homes. With their free accounts, customers can set savings targets – like paying for their children’s education – and earn free mobile airtime as they achieve their goals.
