Joseph Bakare
The Managing Director of the Nigeria Deposit Insurance Corporation, NDIC, Umaru Ibrahim, has stressed the urgent need to bring more Nigerians into the financial services net.
Ibrahim,said the call has become necessary because about 40 per cent of Nigerians do not have access to financial services.
Speaking during a courtesy visit by the Alumni Association of the Institute, AANI, in Abuja, Ibrahim called for close partnership and collaboration with AANI for the rapid economic development of the country. He disclosed that the corporation was established in 1989 to promote public confidence in the banking industry; contribute to the stability of the financial system, as well as ensure an orderly resolution of failed financial institutions.
Ibrahim disclosed that presently about 40 percent of Nigerians are either financially excluded or operate outside the formal financial system. He therefore urged the Association to partner with the corporation to accelerate the pace of financial literacy and financial inclusion among the Nigerian public. He disclosed that the Corporation, in close collaboration with the Central Bank (CBN), will continue to support the introduction of affordable products and services not only to the general public, but also to vulnerable women and dwellers in rural communities.
In furtherance of its elaborate initiatives towards achieving the desired level of Financial Inclusion in the country, the NDIC boss expressed the commitment of the Corporation to support the introduction of new channels of providing financial services such as Agency Banking, Payments Service Banks, and mobile banking among others which will enable small depositors have access to financial services across the country.
In that respect, he called on the general public, especially retired senior public servants and retired bankers to acquire Agency Banking and MFB licenses in order to make modest contributions to the growth and promotion of these services in their respective communities.