African Financial Inclusion Policy Initiative (AfPI)

AfPI is the primary platform for AFI’s African members to support and develop financial inclusion policies and regulatory frameworks, and other knowledge products in Africa, and to coordinate regional capacity building and peer learning efforts. Unveiled in May 2017, in Maputo, Mozambique, AfPI succeeds the African Mobile Phone Financial Services Policy Initiative (AMPI), which was launched in February 2013 in Zanzibar, Tanzania.

From AFI’s regional office in Abidjan, Côte d’Ivoire, AfPI brings together high-level representatives from financial policymaking and regulatory institutions in Africa. Stakeholders from private sector entities, telecommunications regulators and international development agencies also participate in and support AfPI activities. By establishing a platform for public and private engagement, AfPI aims to enhance the implementation of innovative financial inclusion policies in Africa.

Key AfPI initiatives include: Leader’s Roundtable, Private Public Dialogue and Capacity Building, Developed Developing Country Dialogue, and Expert Group on Financial Inclusion Policy meetings (EGFIP).

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Focus Areas

Reinforce the capacity building efforts of financial regulators to ensure that they keep up with the rapidly changing financial inclusion landscape and mitigate underlying risks.
Deepen the understanding of policy and regulatory approaches that enhance innovative financial services in Africa.
Reinforce the dialogue with private sector players and other related stakeholders through AFI’s public-private dialogue in Africa and other forms of cooperation.
Strengthen the cooperation between financial and telecommunication regulators on issues related to digital financial services (DFS).
Deepen the understanding and learning of approaches for interoperable schemes or models to inform effective policy interventions for interoperability that support financial inclusion.

Promote DFS for agricultural micro, small and medium enterprises (MSMEs) and deepen the understanding of policy reforms to support agricultural finance.
Promote inclusive policies for women, especially leveraging new technologies and promoting the adoption of regulations and financial consumer protection frameworks to advance women’s economic participation.
Strengthen synergies between microfinance institutions and DFS providers.
Facilitate the adoption of policy and regulatory approaches to enhance consumer protection for digital credit in Africa.

Key AfPI milestones, as of December 2019:

annual AfPI Leaders’
Roundtables

capacity building
workshops

peer advisory programs on
in-country implementation
of financial inclusion policy

policy frameworks:
Innovative Cross-border
Remittances in Africa,
DFS Interoperability
in Africa, and
Responsible Digital
Credit.

Establishment of the
AFI Regional Office
in Africa (based in
Abidjan, Côte d’Ivoire)
to strengthen the
institutionalization
of AfPI and support
regional efforts

Adoption of a “Cooperative
Arrangement Framework
with Telecommunications Regulators”
in the area of DFS

AFI Office in Abidjan

Plateau, Avenue Marchand Rue Lecoeur Immeuble SCIAM, 12ème étage 17 BP 412 Abidjan 17 Abidjan, Côte d'Ivoire

+225 20 22 16 10