UNSGSA Queen Máxima is greeted during a field visit to meet with members of a Village Savings and Loan Association in Abobo, Abidjan, in June 2022. While in Abidjan, Queen Máxima also participated in a panel at the 2022 Africa CEO Forum on how fintech can boost financial inclusion in Africa. She also met with representatives from the Ministry of Agriculture and Rural Development, as well as the Ministry of Commerce, Industry, and SME Promotion. Building on her productive virtual conversations from 2021, the UNSGSA traveled to Côte d’Ivoire from 13–14 June 2022 for a series of meetings with high-level officials, international development partners, and private sector leaders.ĭuring her visit, the Special Advocate met with First Lady Dominique Ouattara, who is involved in microfinance for women, as well as with Prime Minister Patrick Achi, Vice President Tiémoko Meyliet Koné, and Minister of Finance Adama Coulibaly. However, reaching these ambitious targets will require innovative strategies to reach micro-, small, and medium-sized enterprises (MSMEs), which make up a significant portion of the country’s economy, as well as women and smallholder farmers. Last year, when the UNSGSA met with Ivoirian leaders virtually, they affirmed Côte d’Ivoire’s goal of reaching 60% inclusion by 2024 and digitizing 80% of the government’s financial flows. The country is firmly committed to expanding financial inclusion, particularly by capitalizing on the promise of technology-driven solutions. 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. 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.
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