AFI held a Public-Private Dialogue (PPD) high-level meeting in conjunction with Visa on 16 April 2016 in Washington D.C. The meeting, held on the sidelines of the World Bank-IMF Spring Meetings, was chaired by Mr. Alfred Hannig, Executive Director at AFI, and moderated by Tilman Ehrbeck from Omidyar Network.

This special event convened policymakers and regulators from the AFI network’s more than 100 member institutions along with key private sector industry leaders. Conversation centered on how increased dialogue and cooperation between public and private actors can accelerate the promotion of evidence-based financial inclusion policies that help improve the lives of the world’s unbanked with a particular emphasis on common interests and actions that can be jointly pursued in 2016.

The lively discussion covered a wide range of issues, including an overview of possible public-private cooperation in thematic areas, an examination of the barriers that continue to hold back the full potential of digital financial services, a discussion on how to support AFI’s capacity building programs, and some thoughts on how to ensure that regulatory environments can promote innovation for financial inclusion. The group also agreed that closer cooperation with telecoms regulators was an issue of joint strategic importance and the upcoming meetings of the International Telecommunication Unit (ITU) represented a good opportunity to further advance this goal.

“The PPD represents a unique and invaluable global engagement opportunity,” said Mr. Hannig. “We cannot achieve full financial inclusion with policy and regulation alone. Policymakers and regulators must provide a stable and enabling environment to encourage the kinds of innovations from the private sector that will lead to safe, sound and sustainable ways to reach the unbanked.”

The meeting concluded with the adoption of a joint public-private statement of understanding and intent. This statement formalizes the meeting schedule of the PPD and focuses on expanded high level dialogue, dedicated support for AFI’s capacity building programs and coordinated advocacy efforts to promote common financial incision goals. The specific action points of this statement will be finalized, and implemented through various bilateral and multi-lateral joint activities with private sector partners.

In addition to the focus areas of the statement, participants outlined an intent to increase cooperation in the area of gender and financial inclusion in 2016, including the identification and pursuit of joint initiatives to bridge the financial inclusion gender gap. Data philanthropy was introduced as a new topic of cooperation in the area of financial inclusion data, presenting an opportunity for the private sector to provide additional insight for policymakers and regulators in regard to access and usage of financial services in different jurisdictions. There will be a particular emphasis in regions such as Sub-Saharan Africa and Latin America, where this policy issue has been identified as a key priority.

Representatives reinforced that smart financial inclusion policy can reduce inequality, contribute to overall sustainable economic development and stability, and is an invaluable part of mainstream economic and development work. “An investment in financial inclusion is good policy and a good business decision that will pay dividends for future generations,” said Mr. Hannig.