The government and other stakeholders will use
non-governmental organizations (NGOs), small cooperatives and other ordinary
lenders to reach the poor and involve them in the financial system, a finance
official said.
In a two-day discussion on financial inclusion, Finance Undersecretary Gil Beltran said one of the tools is to use digital finance to encourage the people's participation in the financial system.
More people could be reached through the use of technology because “there are a limited number of venues that could be used by savers and borrowers," Beltran said.
For instance, he said, the number of banks is limited and if the government wants to reach the farthest corners of the country, it cannot be expected for banks to set up branches in small and faraway towns.
Although some areas have no banks or will never be penetrated by banks, they have NGOs engaged in lending and cooperatives that are working to reach the people, he noted.
There could be mutual benefit associations being set up, and these are the ones that really get more participation than banks, he added.
"By their very nature, banks cannot get into the rural areas, into the farthest corners of the country, because they have to make money and they are regulated," he explained, noting that NGOs and cooperatives are thus the financial institutions “that will get us into more financial inclusion".
With NGOs and other lenders, the number of financial institutions reaching the people increases six times compared to banks, he said.
The Department of Finance is hosting the meeting on financial inclusion at the Taal Vista Hotel in Tagaytay City as part of this year’s Asia-Pacific Economic Cooperation (APEC) forum.
The event was organized by the APEC Business Advisory Council, and the Foundation for Development Cooperation, in partnership with Citi Foundation and in collaboration with GE Capital, the International Finance Corp. (IFC), the Consultative Group to Assist the Poor (CGAP), the Japan International Cooperation Agency (JICA), and the Policy and Economic Research Council (PERC). (PCOO News Release)
In a two-day discussion on financial inclusion, Finance Undersecretary Gil Beltran said one of the tools is to use digital finance to encourage the people's participation in the financial system.
More people could be reached through the use of technology because “there are a limited number of venues that could be used by savers and borrowers," Beltran said.
For instance, he said, the number of banks is limited and if the government wants to reach the farthest corners of the country, it cannot be expected for banks to set up branches in small and faraway towns.
Although some areas have no banks or will never be penetrated by banks, they have NGOs engaged in lending and cooperatives that are working to reach the people, he noted.
There could be mutual benefit associations being set up, and these are the ones that really get more participation than banks, he added.
"By their very nature, banks cannot get into the rural areas, into the farthest corners of the country, because they have to make money and they are regulated," he explained, noting that NGOs and cooperatives are thus the financial institutions “that will get us into more financial inclusion".
With NGOs and other lenders, the number of financial institutions reaching the people increases six times compared to banks, he said.
The Department of Finance is hosting the meeting on financial inclusion at the Taal Vista Hotel in Tagaytay City as part of this year’s Asia-Pacific Economic Cooperation (APEC) forum.
The event was organized by the APEC Business Advisory Council, and the Foundation for Development Cooperation, in partnership with Citi Foundation and in collaboration with GE Capital, the International Finance Corp. (IFC), the Consultative Group to Assist the Poor (CGAP), the Japan International Cooperation Agency (JICA), and the Policy and Economic Research Council (PERC). (PCOO News Release)
No comments:
Post a Comment