The Bank of Namibia (BoN) has urged financial sector stakeholders to expand agent banking services in order to boost financial inclusion and support economic growth in rural areas.
This was said by deputy governor of the central bank Ebson Uanguta during the recently held BoN 24th symposium in the capital.
"Another critical aspect of rural transformation is access to financial services.
Making financial services available to rural people and leveraging digital solutions is critical for rural economic transformation.
Therefore, stakeholders in the financial sector development should work on expanding agent banking provisions," he said.
Uanguta said bringing banking services closer to a larger portion of the population, especially those in remote and underserved areas, will increase financial inclusion.
"The bank is committed to its role in this regard and is seized with initiatives to facilitate financial inclusion by leveraging technology and innovation," he said.
Also speaking at the event, BoN governor Johannes !Gawaxab said more investment needs to be made in infrastructure development to have economic development in rural areas.
"Infrastructure networks, including roads, electricity, mobile telecommunications and decent housing are needed for rural economic transformation because roads are the arteries through which the economy pulses and connects rural areas with urban centres and markets."
According to !Gawaxab, roads are vital for any development as they link producers to markets, workers to jobs, students to schools and the sick to hospitals.
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"The current state of rural roads falls significantly short of the desired quality, as a large part of the rural road network remains unpaved, mostly gravel, unsealed and poorly maintained," said !Gawaxab.
He revealed the intricate and challenging nature of acquiring rural property in the country, attributing these difficulties to a range of obstacles related to costs, regulations and procedures, which collectively render the overall process highly inefficient.
"The land tenure system is a prohibitive factor that has adverse effects on both citizens and businesses, particularly by not fully harnessing the potential of communal areas where the majority of Namibians reside."
!Gawaxab said the process of acquiring rural property is fragmented, costly and time-consuming, creating a substantial burden for prospective buyers, investors and other participants in the market.
He emphasised that unleashing the potential of rural Namibia necessitates the establishment of a new legislative framework.
The symposium is held annually by BoN to identify vital development and economic issues facing Namibia, in order to provide evidence-based solutions through dialogue.
