Danbatta says broadband penetration, other interventions targeted at ensuring digital financial inclusion for Nigerians

By Ogaga Ariemu

Executive Vice Chairman of Nigerian Communications  Commission,(NCC), Prof Umar Danbatta has said that broadband penetration, Subscribers Identity Module(SIM) registration, National Identity Number(NIN) to SIM linkage, other digital economy interventions of federal government targeted at ensuring digital financial inclusion for majority of Nigerians.

Danbatta made this known when he featured as a Guest Lecturer at the 5th Annual Bullion Lecture held in Lagos on Thursday.

While speaking on the topic: Driving Pervasive Broadband Penetration to Deepen Digital Financial Inclusion for Nigeria’s Socio-economic Transformation”, Prof Danbatta said embracing the existing telecommunications infrastructure in Nigeria is imperative to achieving economic prosperity.

He noted that digital financial inclusion through leveraging on telecommunications infrastructures is pivotal to taking Nigeria out-off poverty, close the gap of unbanked Nigerians.

To this end, He said this is why Federal Government directed that all Citizens must have National Identification Number (NIN), and Subscribers Identity Module(SIM) linked for ease of identification and tracking.

The EVC, used the lecture as a means to express NCC’s role in providing the needed digital infrastructure and supports for enhancing our digital financial inclusion quest for our national socio-economic development.

Further expanding in the important of lecture’s subject matter, he said, that 1%  increase in financial inclusion increases the real Gross Domestic Product (GDP) per capita by 3.6%.

He added that, “financial inclusion is considered a key enabler to reduce extreme poverty and boost shared prosperity and countries with high mobile money account ownership have less gender inequality”.

He noted that, the statistics of unbanked people has remained the way it is because formal financial services are unavailable to certain categories of people.

“It should be emphasised that the need to boost inclusiveness with respect to access to financial services necessitated the paradigm shift by most countries from simply pursuing financial inclusion to focusing more on digital financial inclusion, by leveraging the digital platforms to provide tailored-made, low-cost financial services to people that are excluded from the formal financial services circle.

“Digital financial inclusion, thus, has the following characteristics:  no bank account needed; use of agents for cash in and cash out; and use of mobile handsets and other digital means for transactions.

In addressing the onboarding of the 41.6% adult Nigerians financially excluded, the EVC advocated for speedy integration of digital finacial inclusion in Nigeria”.

Earlier in his remark, the Chariman of the occassion, President African Fintech Network, Dr Segun Aina said the topic of the lecture is apt following the increasing dependence on digital technologies.

President Association of Telecommunications Companies(ATCON), Engr. Ikechukwu  Nnamani, President Association of Licensed Telecommunications Operators of Nigeria(ALTON), Engr. Gbenga Adebayo other dignitaries were in attendance.

The Bullion Lecture, flagship programme of Centre for Financial Journalism, is a platform for lively discourse on national and international issues.