Launch new products, technology to fortify financial inclusion

FE Report | Published: June 13, 2015 00:00:00 | Updated: November 30, 2026 06:01:00

Bangladesh has advised the SAARCFINANCE member central banks to introduce new financial products along with technological facilities for strengthening the ongoing financial inclusion initiatives in the region.
"New financial products will have to be introduced along with latest technological facilities for enhancing financial inclusion initiatives in the SAARC region. In the upcoming days, we will have to ensure safe and sound technology-based payment system," Bangladesh Bank (BB) Governor Dr. Atiur Rahman said.
He was addressing a working session of the SAARCFINANCE Governors' Symposium on Financial Inclusion at a city's hotel on Friday. The SAARCFINANCE groups central banks of the member-states of the South Asian Association for Regional Cooperation (SAARC).    
The central bank chief stressed on the quality of growth, where broad-based people can be included in the growth process and which can also foster financial stability in an economy.
Different issues including creation of SARRCFINANCE database, SAARC payment council, enhancing financial literacy and creation of SWAP arrangements were discussed at the day-long symposium, according to the organisers.
Governor of the Reserve Bank of India (RBI) Dr. Raghuram G. Rajan appreciated Dr. Atiur Rahman's initiatives to expand green banking in Bangladesh.
The RBI chief also highlighted the problems of financial inclusion in the SAARC region. Major problems in enhancing financial inclusion in the region are religious prohibition of interest and lack of financial literacy, according to Dr. Rajan.
Regarding the creation of SAARCFINANCE database, he said RBI has already taken initiatives and created a template in line with the International Monetary Fund (IMF) guidelines.
He also stressed on some issues including flow of remittance across border, cross-border trade and capacity building.  
"We should use the SAARC University for conducting collaborative research," he opined.
BB Governor Dr Rahman supported the idea of utilising SAARC University for collaborative research and capacity building.
BB Deputy Governor SK Sur Chowdhury told the FE after the symposium: "We're promoting financial inclusion initiatives for achieving inclusive economic growth and sustainable development. The broad objectives of financial inclusion are critical to achieving our larger goals as a society - to become a poverty-free middle-income country, to maintain environmentally sustainable growth, and to be a more inclusive and equitable society by 2021."
Meanwhile, Dr. Atiur Rahman, while inaugurating the symposium in the morning, also urged the South Asian central banks to work closely for achieving sustainable economic growth in the region.
The central bank has organised the SAARCFINANCE Governors' Symposium as a part of achieving one of the broad objectives to forge closer cooperation on macro-economic policies of the SAARC member-countries and to share experiences and ideas.
The SAARCFINANCE was formed in October 1998 as a network of central bank governors and finance secretaries of the SAARC region that groups Bangladesh, Bhutan, India, the Maldives, Nepal, Pakistan, Afghanistan and Sri Lanka.
Lakshmanan Savithri, director of SAARC Secretariat, requested the SAARCFINANCE members to discuss genuine integration, so that free movement of capital can be facilitated, and inter-regional investment and remittance are hassle-free within the region.
The State Bank of Pakistan (SBP) Governor Ashraf Mahmood Wathra in his speech stressed on the need for a greater cooperation among the central banks of the SAARC countries for ensuring collective welfare of the region. "The philosophy behind cooperation among the member central banks is to promote collective welfare in the region. In this context, the SAARCFINANCE network can play an important role in promoting cooperation among the member countries," he added.
Mr. Wathra, who is also the Chairman of SAARCFINANCE, was speaking at the 30th SAARCFINANCE Group Meeting.
Mr. Wathra also highlighted some of the initiatives undertaken by the network, like - availability of short-term liquidity facility for the member countries under the SAARC, capacity building programmes under Scholarship Scheme, exchange of knowledge on issues of mutual interest through SAARCFINANCE Portal, creation of a regional database, and collaborative research studies.
Dasho Daw Tenzin, Governor of the Royal Monetary Authority of Bhutan, also spoke on the occasion.
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