FG Plans Financial Inclusion For 30 Million Unbanked Citizens – Shettima

Nigeria’s Vice President, Kashim Shettima, has said the federal government would ensure that 30 million Nigerians who are unbanked are brought into the formal financial sector.

Kashim Shettima said the plan was in line with President Bola Tinubu’s commitment to close the gap of financial exclusion of some Nigerians.

Shettima said this while addressing high-level policy dialogue, on financial inclusion and sustainability, between the Nigerian government and private sector stakeholders held in Washington DC, the United States.

He said there was an urgent need for financial innovation to drive Nigeria’s economic and financial inclusion agenda by including every Nigerian into the formal financial sector.

According to Senior Special Assistant to Shettima on Media and Publicity, Stanley Nkwocha, on Thursday, “The policy dialogue brought together government officials, regulators, law enforcement agencies, and fintech industry leaders at the George Washington University” and aimed “to leverage innovative approaches to drive a sustainable and inclusive financial system in Nigeria.”

Shettima, who spoke through a video conference call, said, “President Tinubu is committed to bringing over 30 million unbanked Nigerians into the formal financial sector in line with the administration’s Renewed Hope Agenda.”

Nkwocha added that the dialogue focused on addressing critical challenges in Nigeria’s fintech ecosystem, including regulatory oversight, security concerns, and trust issues that have hindered the widespread adoption of innovative financial solutions.

The Vice President also told the stakeholders there was the need to develop a sustainable collaboration that would facilitate the adoption of inclusive payment to achieve financial inclusion.

“We must develop a sustainable collaboration approach that will facilitate the adoption of inclusive payment to achieve our objective of economic and financial inclusion,” the statement added.

On his part, the Deputy Chief of Staff to the President, Senator Ibrahim Hadejia, called on agencies of government to work towards achieving the financial inclusion goal of the federal government.

Hadeja said, “While the Office of the Vice President has given priority to economic and financial inclusion, it is expected that each agency of government will continue to play their statutory role collaboratively to achieve the set objective.”