Expert lists ways to solve Nigeria’s financial inclusion gaps using localised solutions

Nigeria’s financial inclusion has remained one of the country’s greatest economic challenges, as many people are still excluded from formal banking and lack access to digital financial services.

In a quest for unlocking Nigeria’s financial future and overcoming financial inclusion challenges, Olu Akanmu, executive in Residence at Lagos Business School Tech Leap Initiative, has proffered an actionable blueprint to unlock Nigeria’s financial future.

In a presentation, he disclosed that this blueprint will start with last-mile expansion and the delivery of government cash transfers through digital financial rails. It will also include coordinated national efforts, strong partnerships, and a focus on cultural context.

Akanmu noted the need for deliberate integration of financial services into grassroots economic programs such as smallholder agriculture, MSMEs, trade, and vocational training sectors that form the backbone of Nigeria’s low-income economy.

He also cited the need to deliver Government-to-Person (G2P) cash transfers digitally, to bring millions of the economically excluded into the formal financial system.

“We must embed financial inclusion where the poor already operate and live. That is the only way we can reach scale,” Akanmu said.

Read also: Women, northern inclusion key to closing financial inclusion gap

In a move to allow digital identity to meet financial inclusion, he called for the urgent linking of National Identification Numbers (NINs) to the 67 million Nigerians on the National Social Register (NSR), many of whom lack financial accounts.

By opening immediate digital wallets or accounts for those individuals and delivering monthly cash transfers digitally, the government can broaden access, reduce leakages, and improve auditability, he stated.

“Cash-In, Cash-Out(CICO) agents will be pivotal. They will not only handle cash withdrawals but also serve as grassroots financial educators.”

He said the model must be credible, scalable, efficient, and auditable, with strong positive economic ripple effects, especially in underserved regions like northern Nigeria.

Akanmu cited India’s success as a reference with digital G2P programs, which have driven financial inclusion and lifted millions out of poverty. “Nigeria can replicate that success if there’s strong collaboration between banks, fintechs, the CBN, NIMC, telecoms, and the Ministry of Humanitarian Affairs, he noted.

He recommended expanding the NSR to include all NIN holders not currently covered, potentially adding millions more to the financial grid.

To close the 40 million identity-finance gap, Akanmu noted that Nigeria faces a glaring gap, which is that an estimated 28–40 million Nigerians possess a digital identity (NIN) but no financial account.

Closing the gap is critical not just for inclusion, but for broader economic reforms, he noted. “These individuals are often the same population targeted by social intervention programs. This is why we need the strongest institutional mobilisation possible to deliver cash transfer programs at scale using digital rails, culture, community, and conscious design,” he said.

Akanmu noted the importance of culture and gender-conscious design in financial services and proposed the use of religious and community leaders as trusted voices to promote financial education and adoption.

“Trust is local. We must use familiar voices and culturally relevant channels to drive behavioural change,” he added.