AMMBAN Confab to Explore Framework for Financial Inclusion Gains

Emma Okonji

The 5th conference of the Association of Mobile Money and Bank Agents in Nigeria (AMMBAN), which holds in November in Abuja, with the theme “Sustaining the Gain of Financial Inclusion: Exploring suitable framework for last mile Drivers,” seeks to explore suitable framework to sustain gains achieved in the financial inclusion initiative of the Central Bank of Nigeria (CBN).

National President of AMMBAN, Mr. Victor Olojo, who made the disclosure recently, said the conference would be looking into the best ways for last mile drivers to sustain the gains of financial inclusion.

According to Olojo, “Looking back over the past five years that AMMBAN started, we are happy to say that we have witnessed meaningful gain in the industry. For instance, the Shared Agent Network Expansion Facilities (SANEF) has recorded 700,000 mobile money and banking agents spread across the country. This is a good sign that we have made progress and the federal government financial inclusion target has been met and exceeded.

“We believe that we need to ensure that we work and build on these gains by creating a sustainable framework that will make us to achieve the results we desire, beyond getting the numbers, other things need to be put in place such as regulations, proper framework, agents welfare and security of agents, issues around broadening the scope and ensuring that we are able to do other services beyond cash-in cash-out such as insurance, micro-pension, micro –investment for us to be able to capture the informal market.”

He said the AMMBAN conference would create an atmosphere where stakeholders in the industry such as SANEF, CBN, Banks among others, would discuss how to sustain the gains achieved in the financial inclusion policy.
AMMBAN has been instrumental in conducting training on agent on-boarding and also helping a number of institutions in the sector in achieving their business objectives by taking their services into the hinterland, Olojo said, adding that members of the association have become targets of armed robbery attacks prompting the need for collaboration with law enforcement agents on protecting them.

Olojo further said: “These worrisome attacks, which have sadly resulted in the deaths of some of our members and loss of money and valuables have further highlighted the fact that we have become soft targets and run even greater risks in the face of a wide scale insecurity in the country.

Whilst the Association is exploring effective ways to confronting the situation and as well engaging relevant security outfits to finding a lasting solution to this menace, we will like to admonish that our members take adequate precautions and be circumspect in your dealings.”