The Policy Research Institute of Bangladesh (PRI) on Thursday organized a national consultation on digital financial services and financial inclusion at the local level in Bangladesh at a hotel in Dhaka.
The event brought together esteemed public and private sector stakeholders, experts, practitioners, policymakers, and researchers to discuss the adoption and effectiveness of digital financial services among the marginalized population in Bangladesh.
The national consultation organized the event as part of the "Policy Initiative for DFS in Bangladesh" project, implemented by PRI of Bangladesh, with support from the Bill and Melinda Gates Foundation.
Under this project, PRI commissioned three studies last year focusing on DFS (digital financial services) use among different marginalized groups in Bangladesh to three universities: Bangladesh Agricultural University, Shahjalal University of Science and Technology, and Hajee Mohammad Danesh Science and Technology University read a press release.
The key findings from the three studies were presented at the event.
Dr Lila Rashid, former executive director of Bangladesh Bank, Khondoker Shakhawat Ali, Emeritus fellow at Unnayan Shamannay and visiting fellow at BIGD, BRAC, and Dr Mohammad Saidur Rahman, professor at the Department of Agricultural Economics, Faculty of Agricultural Economics and Rural Sociology, Bangladesh Agricultural University joined the event.
The event commenced with welcome remarks from Dr Ahsan H Mansur, executive director of the Policy Research Institute (PRI) of Bangladesh.
Speaking on the occasion, Dr Mansur highlighted the significance of financial inclusion in combating poverty in Bangladesh and the potential of digital financial services in bringing the unbanked population into the formal financial system to empower them to take control of their financial decisions and build resilience through managing financial risks effectively.
Dr Bazlul Haque Khondker, director of PRI set the tone of the consultation event by emphasizing the critical importance of engaging with regional and local level stakeholders to generate knowledge and evidence on the use, adoption, and challenges of digital financial services (DFS) for different marginalized communities.
Dr Khondker underscored the need to gather insights and perspectives directly from the communities that are most affected by financial exclusion.
By involving stakeholders at the grassroots level, including farmers, socially and economically vulnerable wetland population, and plain land ethnic minority communities, PRI aimed to facilitate a comprehensive understanding of the realities and intricacies surrounding DFS in Bangladesh.
Dr Md Akhtaruzzaman Khan, head of the Department of Agricultural Finance and Banking at Bangladesh Agricultural University, presented a research paper on the "Adoption and Potency of Digital Financial Services among Farmers in Bangladesh," highlighting the role of digital financial services in empowering farmers and enhancing the agricultural sector.
Digital financial services are critical in the agriculture sector, providing multiple benefits and addressing a variety of difficulties encountered by farmers. The study involved a survey with 400 farmers from livestock, fisheries, crops, and horticulture.
The study found that bKash (82 per cent) is the most popular DFS product among the respondent farmers, followed by Nagad (30 per cent) and Rocket (23 per cent).
DFS is most commonly used for utility bill payments as the payment amount is comparatively small and incurs low transaction fees.
Poultry and fish farmers, for example, utilize DFS mostly to purchase feed, chick/egg/fingerlings, and medicine/insecticide, and they also use DFS on a modest scale to obtain payment for selling output.
Yet, farmers prefer cash over DFS to avoid the risk of making large sums of transactions.
The second study in the event on "Access to Digital Financial Services for the Plain Land Indigenous Population in Northern Bangladesh" was presented by Asrafi Bintay Akram, associate professor at the Department of Sociology, Hajee Mohammad Danesh Science and Technology University.
In her presentation, Akram shed light on the challenges and opportunities in providing digital financial services to the plain land ethnic minorities of the Santal and Orao communities in the Rangpur and Rajshahi divisions of northern Bangladesh.
The study surveyed 749 individuals from the Santal and Orao communities and found that only 77 per cent of respondents own mobile phones.
The percentage of mobile phone ownership is even less among women (only 31 per cent). Although a vast majority (84 per cent) opened MFS accounts with help from MFS agents, only 42 per cent currently use MFSs.
Khondoker Shakhawat Ali, Emeritus Fellow at Unnayan Shamannay and visiting fellow at BIGD, BRAC University, provided thoughtful reflections as a distinguished discussant on the topic of financial services for the plainland indigenous population.
Dr Md Nazrul Islam, Professor at the Department of Business Administration, Shahjalal University of Science and Technology presented the findings of the study "Impact of Digital Financial Services on Poverty of Haor (wetland) dwellers in Bangladesh: Expansion and Deepening Approach."
The presentation emphasized the potential of digital financial services in uplifting the lives and livelihoods of the Haor population.
The study found that 65.66 per cent of haor-dwelling respondents owned bank accounts, and 64.66 per cent of respondents had accounts with NGOs. Most of the respondents (81.33 per cent) were found to be aware of or have knowledge about M/DFS.
The reflections from distinguished discussant Dr Lila Rashid, Former Executive Director of Bangladesh Bank, provided valuable perspectives on the DFS use among Haor population, enriching the discussions further.
The event included an open floor discussion and a dynamic question-and-answer session, where the audience actively engaged with the speakers, exchanging ideas and insights.
Snigdha Ali, Bangladesh Country Lead, Financial Services for the Poor Team, Bill & Melinda Gates Foundation, and Dr Sadiq Ahmed, vice chairman, Policy Research Institute of Bangladesh graced the event as special guests.
The event provided a platform for meaningful dialogue and knowledge exchange on the potential of digital financial services in promoting financial inclusion in Bangladesh.
The event ended with closing remarks and the organizers expressing gratitude to all participants for their valuable contributions.
