Ladies and Gentlemen: In an effort to confront poverty, that currently afflicts more than 1 billion people in the World, most of whom are in the developing countries, financial inclusion has been seen as one of the channels that can significantly reduce poverty sustainably.
This is because access to financial services by the poor provides a safe haven for their savings and widens their economic opportunities through savings-investment cycles. However, in Africa and other developing countries in Asia and Latin America, 90% of the population do not have access to financial services.