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The African Development Bank (AfDB), has signed a 525,000 dollar agreement to support Africa Fintech Network’s (AFN)’s Hub project.
Mr Lamin Barrow, the Director-General, AfDB, Nigeria Country Department, during the signing in Abuja on Tuesday, said the project would boost the fintech industry on the continent.
According to Barrow, the grant will support the operationalisation of an online digital hub to serve as a repository of knowledge for fintech entities across the continent, and globally.
In his words, “The Digital Hub, which is to be delivered through a strategic partnership between the Africa Fintech Network and Cenfri, will help to strengthen the fintech ecosystem across Africa and boost the industry’s competitiveness.
“The grant is funded by the Africa Digital Financial Inclusion Facility (ADFI), inaugurated by the AfDB Group, together with its partners the Bill and Melinda Gates Foundation
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“Other partners are the Ministry of Finance of Luxembourg, and Agence Française de Développement in 2019, with the Ministry of Finance and Economy of France and the Women Entrepreneurs Finance Initiative (We-Fi) joining in 2020 and 2022 respectively.”
The director-general said the event marked an important milestone in AfDB’s efforts to promote digital innovation and financial inclusion in African Countries.
Barrow quoted the 2021 Global Findex Study, as saying that 49 per cent of Africans were excluded from the formal economy and the benefits it brought.
He reiterated the importance of fintech on the continent which is to provide powerful, readily available and effective digital financial solutions to help bridge the financial inclusion gap.
Barrow said with the current digital disruption in the financial sector, more fintech startups were coming to the fore.
(NAN)
