Page 5 - ITU-T Focus Group Digital Financial Services – Interoperability

Foreword

An estimated 2 billion adults are still without access to a bank account, but some
1.6 billion of them have access to a mobile phone. ‘Mobile money services’ show
great promise to expand financial inclusion by bringing basic financial services
to people that remain on the margins of society.

In 2014, the Bill & Melinda Gates Foundation joined ITU to establish an ITU-T
Focus Group on Digital Financial Services (DFS). The financial-services and
information and communication technology (ICT) sectors are converging, and
the aim of the Focus Group was to bring all the key players together to build a
common understanding of the route to broader financial inclusion.
The Focus Group was successful to an extent that exceeded expectations. After
two years of extensive consultation, the Focus Group concluded its work in early
2017 with the publication of 85 policy recommendations and 28 supporting
thematic reports.

The Focus Group’s work was driven by the collaboration of more than 60 organizations from over 30 countries.
Asked what made the Focus Group unique, all of the group’s participants highlighted its diversity. This was the
first initiative to bring together all the actors working in the interests of financial inclusion. We opened new
lines of communication to build a strong understanding of the components of the DFS ecosystem.

In the next phase of our collaboration, we will be certain that we are speaking on the same terms.
This next phase of collaboration – the ‘Financial Inclusion Global Initiative’ – will be a three-year programme of
collective action led by ITU, the Bill & Melinda Gates Foundation, the World Bank Group, and the Committee
on Payments and Market Infrastructure.

The new multi-partisan will provide targeted assistance to selected countries in their pursuit of financial-inclusion
targets. This implementation work stream will be supported by annual symposia and thematic working groups.
Our Focus Group responded to a diverse set of challenges by mobilizing a diverse set of expertise. We are
moving forward in exactly this spirit. The Focus Group demonstrated DFS stakeholders’ commitment to
collaboration. ITU was glad to provide a neutral platform for this collaboration and we look forward to our
continued work together to achieve universal access to financial services.

Dr Chaesub Lee

Director, ITU Telecommunication Standardization Bureau

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