Aishah Ahmad, Herbert Wigwe to speak as CBN hosts first financial inclusion conference

The National Financial Inclusion Steering Committee, headed by the Central Bank of Nigeria (CBN), will host the maiden International Financial Inclusion Conference (IFIC ’22) on November 24 and 25, 2022.

According to a statement by the committee, the two-day conference themed “financial inclusion for all: scaling innovative digital models” will hold in Abuja.

The event is the first since the country launched the National Financial Inclusion Strategy (NFIS) in 2012. 

The statement added that the event would cut across the world to examine the opportunities, identifying concrete solutions and interventions that would ensure the achievement of the nation’s financial inclusion objectives. 

Mrs. Aishah N. Ahmad, CFA– Deputy Governor, Central Bank of Nigeria will deliver a keynote speech on “Leveraging Policy for Financial Inclusion in Nigeria” at IFIC2022.#ific2022 #financialinclusion #secnigeria pic.twitter.com/6nS0iWamVs

— Central Bank of Nigeria (@cenbank) November 13, 2022

“The conference will feature the launch of the revised National Financial Inclusion Strategy, the Nigeria Financial Services Maps (NFS Maps), the Women Agent Framework, the National Fintech Strategy and the Payment System Vision 2025,” the statement reads.

“It will also present the Innovation Labs exhibition highlighting innovative products and solutions and the Financial Inclusion Awards, which recognises stakeholders who have contributed to tackling exclusion and the advancement of financial inclusion in Nigeria.

“Through IFIC’22, Nigeria leads an important global conversation on the journey to closing the financial inclusion gap for the last mile in Sub-Saharan Africa and globally.

Commenting on the event, Godwin Emefiele, chairman of NFISC and governor of CBN, said it would be an opportunity to promote financial services and stability.

“We are excited to host the maiden International Financial Inclusion conference in Nigeria,” he said.

“The conference presents a unique opportunity to showcase our financial inclusion journey, particularly the innovative use cases that continue to emerge within the dynamic payments and financial system.

“These will be important to ensure 95 percent of Nigerians are financially included by 2024. 

The conference will also create a platform to spotlight other country’s experiences, the role of policy innovation, digital technology and out-of-the-box approaches in tackling exclusion in underserved segments, and the strategic importance of public-private partnerships to promote digital financial services and economic sustainability. 

Distinguished personalities expected at the conference include President Muhammadu Buhari (special guest of honour), Godwin Emefiele, CBN governor, Boss Mustapha, secretary to the government of the Federation, Isa Pantami, minister of communications and digital economy, amongst others.  

Policymakers delivering keynotes include Elsie Addo-Awadzi, deputy governor of Bank of Ghana, Chad Blackman, special adviser to the president of the International Labour Organisation (ILO), Alfred Hannig, executive director, Alliance for Financial Inclusion (AFI) and Aishah Ahmad, deputy governor, Central Bank of Nigeria.

Other speakers include; Herbert Wigwe, group CEO of Access Holdco Plc, Anna Wallace, senior programme officer, Bill and Melinda Gates Foundation, Inez Murray, CEO of Financial Alliance for Women, Gail Makenete, deputy governor, Central Bank of Lesotho and chair expert leaders group, Graca Machel Trust, Mike Ogbalu III, CEO of PAPSS and Olayinka David-West, associate dean, Lagos Business School, amongst others.