WASHINGTON and LONDON – Information and communication technologies, especially mobile phones, are now one step closer to increasing access to basic financial services for the world’s poor.
The UK Department for International Development (DFID) said Thursday that it will commit GBP 8 million to the Consultative Group to Assist the Poor (CGAP) earmarked for its technology program.
"The idea that a mobile phone could replace a bank branch has gone from concept to reality at an amazing pace”, said Stephen Rasmussen, manager of the CGAP technology program, in the announcement. “Now with support from DFID and the Bill & Melinda Gates Foundation, it’s time to get beyond the early excitement of the past few years and shift into the build-out stage for mobile money so that millions of poor people everywhere get access to formal financial services."
In addition to mobile phones, communication technologies such as point of sale devices and ATMs are increasingly connecting poor people to the financial grid, CGAP said. The world’s first mobile phone-enabled savings accounts aimed at reaching poor, unbanked people is nearing completion by its project partners in India, Mongolia, Pakistan and the Philippines.
Housed at the World Bank, CGAP is an independent policy and research centre dedicated to advancing financial access for the world’s poor.
