Egypt: AFI Annual General Meeting Kicks Off in Sharm El Sheikh

The annual general meeting of the Alliance for Financial Inclusion (AFI) kicked off in Sharm el Sheikh under the patronage of President Abdel Fattah El Sisi.

Representatives from 95 countries are taking part in the gathering which focuses on means of promoting financial inclusion mechanisms in the AFI member states.

After the meeting, Regional Initiatives Leaders Roundtable will be held. Later on, the AFI's Global Standards and Policy Committee will convene.

Preparatory meetings for the largest international conference on financial inclusion started in Sharm el Sheikh .

The two-day conference is due to open with the participation of more than 94 states and 119 international institutions.

The talks are expected to tackle means of amalgamating public and private sectors, diversity as a way for realizing financial inclusion, reducing poverty rates and upping the Gross Domestic Product (GDP). They will tackle experiences of participating states in this regard.

The talks will also address regional mechanisms for reducing risks and means of benefiting from modern technology and digital financial services, especially in small and medium sized enterprises.

The talks will address diversity and Financial Inclusion and means of balancing the formal and informal sector.

The talks will also bring to the fore international, regional and countries' perspectives of balancing the formal and informal sector, showing different approaches that have been implemented with a view to share key policy and regulatory lessons.

During the conference, Egypt will showcase its financial inclusion experience, especially with regard to micro, small and medium sized enterprises.

On the fringe of the conference, the Financial Inclusion in the Arab Region Initiative (FIAR) will be inked

Financial inclusion means that individuals and businesses have access to useful and affordable financial products and services that meet their needs transactions, payments, savings, credit and insurance – delivered in a responsible and sustainable way.

The conference - sponsored by the presidency and the cabinet - is organized by the Central Bank of Egypt in tandem with the Alliance for Financial Inclusion (AFI).

The alliance organizes a financial inclusion conference annually. The first was held in Kenya in 2009. Similar gatherings were held in Indonesia, Mexico, South Africa, Malaysia, Mozambique and Fiji.

The Alliance for Financial Inclusion empowers policymakers to increase access to quality financial services for the poorest populations.

The AFI was founded on the idea that a global knowledge exchange platform was key to expanding and improving financial inclusion policy.

Over the years, the AFI network, with the support its funders and partners, has invested deeply in this platform, and data shows the model is delivering tangible results.

AFI is led by its members and partners, central banks and other financial regulatory institutions from developing countries. AFI’s members serve to give voice to the opportunities and challenges facing the unbanked.

The network includes members from more than 90 countries working together to accelerate the adoption of proven and innovative financial inclusion policy solutions with the ultimate aim of making financial services more accessible to the world’s unbanked.