Members of the Pacific Islands Working Group (PIWG) discussed a broad range of financial inclusion issues during its 10th meeting held 12-14 February 2013 in Honiara, Solomon Islands. The working group also supported the Central Bank of Samoa (CBS) and Bank of Papua New Guinea (BPNG) in making Maya Declaration Commitments at the meeting.

Central Bank of Solomon Islands (CBSI) Deputy Governor Gane Simbe was unanimously elected to serve as PIWG Chair for the next two years, while Reserve Bank of Vanuatu (RBV) Deputy Governor Peter Taro Merakali will fill the role of PIWG Deputy Chair during that same period.

The PIWG Chair will report progress at the Forum Economic Ministers Meeting (FEMM), and will include the report in the South Pacific Central Bank Governors Meeting agenda hosted by BPNG in December.

Additionally members agreed and endorsed four key priority areas for 2013-2014 — including data, consumer empowerment, microinsurance and e-money trust arrangements.

For a data project, each member country will generate domestic discussion and agree upon “AFI Core Set Indicators” to measure the progress of financial inclusion targets that are still sufficiently common to measure PIWG progress indicators, as well as create a position paper to entrench and embed the measurement by 15 March 2013.

PIWG members also resolved to strengthen consumer protection and increase financial education in the region. The working group’s members decided to create a standard template called the “Key Facts Sheet” which can be shared across the region and among providers of financial services, supported the formation of the PIWG/CEMG sub-committee with RBV as Chair and representatives from members nominated to the sub-committee, and endorsed in principle the Commonwealth Youth Programme (CYP) to conduct a baseline study on youth financial inclusion in the Pacific.

Finally, the working group announced an intent to maintain its focus on ICP 4 Licensing, ICP 9 Supervisory Review and Reporting and ICP 18 Intermediaries, and agreed a regulatory assessment will be carried out with priority given to Papua New Guinea and Fiji, followed by the Solomon Islands and East Timor.