O Financial Inclusion Index (IIF) calculated by the Bank of Mozambique (BM) stood at 12,76 points, in 2021, against the 13,93 recorded in 2020, reflecting a reduction of 1,2 points.
This drop is fundamentally the result of a reduction in access points (bank branches, micro banks and credit unions, bank agents, ATMs and POS), with a special focus on the city of Maputo, as well as the downturn in economic activity over the period. under analysis (Covid-19 effect).
According to a report on Financial Inclusion recently published by the Bank of Mozambique, the IIF, at provincial level, is still higher in the city of Maputo (82,69 points), followed by the province of Inhambane (10,36 points) and Maputo (9,95 points).
The lowest levels are observed in the provinces of Zambézia (2,84 points) and Niassa (3,67 points).
BUT: Mozambique: Financial inclusion in the country enters a decisive phase
Within the framework of the Government's initiatives aimed at the financial inclusion of the rural population, it is worth mentioning, in 2021, the carrying out of actions carried out in the light of the project "One district, one bank", which allowed the installation of three branches, making a total of from 45 agencies since 2016, the year the project was launched.
Also noteworthy is the Sustenta project, which in the 2020/2021 agrarian campaign benefited 103 districts in eight provinces of the country (except Inhambane, Maputo province and Maputo City), and overall, the program covered, directly or indirectly, 291.241 beneficiaries.
As benefits of the digitization of State payments (G2P), in the mandatory State Social Security system, the National Institute of Social Security (INPS) increased the number of pensioners paid via transfer to the respective bank accounts, out of a total of 165.722 pensioners, in December 2020, for approximately 184.433 pensioners, in December 2021, representing an increase of 18.711 pensioners, increasing to 95% of pensioners receiving their pensions via bank transfer.
As for the degree of compliance with the action plan of the National Strategy for Financial Inclusion (ENIF), by 2021, of the total of 54 actions included in the Action Plan of the 2016-2022 strategy, 17 actions (31%) were carried out, 21 actions ( 39%) are ongoing, four actions have not yet started (7%) and 12 actions (22%) are permanent.
It should be noted that the Mozambican Government launched, in 2016, the National Strategy for Financial Inclusion 2016-2022, which aims to provide a structured approach for the implementation of priority policies and actions for the establishment of mechanisms for monitoring, evaluating and coordinating activities to be carried out by the various stakeholders, with a view to accelerating the process of building a society that is financially included in Mozambique.
