PASS TO GREATER PROSPERITY: Advancing Financial Security And Well-Being Across Africa Through Digital Inclusion

The COVID-19 pandemic threw the world into disarray, but in Africa, life continues: Farmers farm, merchants sell, people apply for capital to create jobs and improve livelihoods, and a heightened need for access to healthcare underpins it all.

But on a continent with widespread inequality, where over half of the population is still excluded from the formal economy, and one in three lacks formal proof of identity – the task to go from ‘survive’ to ‘thrive’, is an even greater challenge. This is particularly critical at a time when there is a global food crisis in the making.

Still, a silver lining exists. In villages, farms, cities, clinics and communities across Africa, a digital evolution is underfoot, one that started even before the pandemic. While there are significant gaps in infrastructure and internet access, mobile phones proliferate, making the continent fertile soil for the adoption of innovative solutions that create new value chains and wider access to financial tools.

Take farming for instance. In Africa, farmers face significant challenges, including limited access to markets, access to working capital to secure quality seeds and pesticides, and access to relevant financial tools to pay and get paid efficiently. Millions of farmers across Africa work incredibly hard to make a subsistence living. For whole communities to truly thrive, the people working the land need a sustainable farming model which helps farmers move from subsistence production to more commercial production and does so in a way that is fair and transparent to all parties.