Thanks to a strong national financial inclusion strategy and the spread of mobile money, Côte d’Ivoire has the potential to be at the forefront of financial inclusion in West Africa. According to the World Bank Global Findex, in 2021 51% of adults have access to an account, compared with 34% in 2014 and 41% in 2017.
Country Visits
Building on Progress in Viet Nam
Within just one generation, Viet Nam has undergone an extraordinary transformation from being one of the world’s poorest nations to achieving lower-middle-income status. While financial inclusion has also increased sharply, the majority of Vietnamese still do not… Read more
June 1, 2017
Special Advocate Visiting Viet Nam to Discuss Financial Inclusion
Flag of Viet Nam.The UN Secretary-General's Special Advocate for Inclusive Finance for Development, H.M. Majesty Queen Máxima of the Netherlands, will visit Viet Nam from 30 May through 1 June 2017 to explore paths to progress on financial inclusion. Viet Nam is… Read more
May 25, 2017
Argentina Illustrates Need for Access to Finance
The Special Advocate often observes that financial inclusion is a universal issue, one that needs to be addressed in every country. The situation in Argentina illustrates her point with great clarity.
Although Argentina is a middle-income country with the third-largest economy in Latin America,… Read more
October 12, 2016
Queen Máxima to visit Argentina to promote access to financial services
Flag of Argentina.From Tuesday 11 to Wednesday 12 October Her Majesty Queen Máxima of the Netherlands will visit Argentina in her role as the UN Secretary-General’s Special Advocate for Inclusive Finance for Development (UNSGSA). In the capital Buenos Aires she… Read more
October 4, 2016
Technology Helps Accelerate Financial Inclusion in Indonesia
Indonesia’s dynamic growth over the last 15 years has helped cut poverty in more than half. Still, 40 percent linger right above the poverty line, their economic prospects in need of further protection. To build further on this progress, the government has made a commitment to extend financial… Read more
September 1, 2016
Special Advocate Traveling to Indonesia to Discuss Financial Inclusion
Flag of Indonesia.As Indonesia takes increasingly strong steps to build financial inclusion, the UN Secretary-General’s Special Advocate for Inclusive Finance for Development (UNSGSA)—H.M. Queen Máxima of the Netherlands—will visit to the country from Tuesday 30… Read more
August 25, 2016
UN Special Advocate Queen Máxima to Visit Pakistan to Discuss Financial Inclusion
H.M. Queen Máxima of the Netherlands, the UN Secretary-General’s Special Advocate for Inclusive Finance for Development (UNSGSA), will visit Pakistan 9–11 February 2016 to promote financial inclusion and support the implementation of the country’s National Financial Inclusion Strategy. Launched in… Read more
February 4, 2016
Special Advocate Visits Bangladesh to Promote Access to Financial Services
UN logo.H.M. Queen Máxima of the Netherlands will visit Bangladesh from Monday 16 to Wednesday 18 November in her role as the UN Secretary-General's Special Advocate for Inclusive Finance at the invitation of the Bangladeshi government.
This will be Queen Máxima’s… Read more
November 12, 2015
Special Advocate Visiting Philippines for Launch of National Financial Inclusion Strategy
In her capacity as the UN Secretary-General’s Special Advocate for Inclusive Finance for Development, Queen Máxima will visit the Philippines from 29 June to 1 July. She will meet with a wide range of leaders from public and private sectors and with clients, and will participate in the launch of… Read more
June 24, 2015
Special Advocate Visiting Myanmar to Advance Financial Inclusion
Queen Máxima in Myanmar with the UN Resident Coordinator Renata Lok-Dessallien. Photo credit: UNDP MyanmarThe UN Secretary-General’s Special Advocate for Inclusive Finance for Development, H.M. Queen Máxima of the Netherlands, has arrived in Myanmar at the… Read more
March 30, 2015
Special Advocate to Visit China to Discuss Access to Financial Services
From Monday 24 November to Friday 28 November, Her Majesty Queen Máxima of the Netherlands will visit China in her capacity as the UN Secretary-General’s Special Advocate for Inclusive Finance for Development (UNSGSA). China is taking various measures to improve access to financial services in… Read more
November 17, 2014
A Meeting of Minds Over Financial Inclusion in India
The Special Advocate visited a water ATM project in India, which dispenses fresh water in the manner of an ATM.The UNSGSA met with the newly appointed minister of finance, the governor and leaders of the Reserve Bank of India, non-bank financial services providers… Read more
July 31, 2014
