Recent Blogs
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Consumer Protection at the Crux of Takaful Islamic Insurance
A growing need exists to design insurance products that meet the needs of the world's 2 billion Muslims. Takaful insurance is one possible solution, but consumer protection is a challenge.Blog
Beyond Mobile: Tablets as Tools for the Extreme Poor
Tablet-based apps are being used to address a range of development issues, such as health, education, and personal finance. Fundacion Capital's LISTA App is one tablet-based education tool helping to bridge the financial education gap in Colombia.Blog
How Responsible Is Digital Finance? 10 Global Insights
CGAP conducted a Global Pulse Survey among policy makers, financial service providers, consumer advocates and foundations to gauge perceptions of consumer risks within digital financial services.Blog
Regulating for Inclusive Insurance Markets in Ghana
Tremendous gains have been made in Ghana's microinsurance market in recent years. Here's what the National Insurance Commission of Ghana, along with the German Development Corporation, did to help develop the market - and what challenges lie ahead.Blog
Insurance and Financial Inclusion: IAIS and A2ii
Regulation and supervision of insurance markets are key tools to improve access to finance for poor people.Blog
Merchant Incentives in the Shift to Cashless Food Aid
Shifting social support benefits through electronic payments instead of cash or in-kind contributions offers many benefits, but evidence from existing programs suggests that the link between these payments and financial inclusion is is challenging to make.Blog
Don’t Abandon Youth Financial Services - Innovate
Providing services for small savers is a challenge for financial institutions. With this in mind, Freedom from Hunger is getting a better understanding of the business case behind financial services to youth, who many financial institutions choose not to serve.Blog
How Can Group Loans be Provided more Responsibly?
In order for financial products to help people meet their goals, the products need to fit in with a household's natural cash flows and financial situation.Blog
Four Mobile Money Trends from the IMF Financial Access Survey
The expanded IMF Financial Access Survey now includes basic mobile money indicators. The data shed light on four trends that stand out.Blog
Three Ways Financial Service Providers Can Empower Customers
Ensuring that digital financial services are used successfully by poor communities requires a new customer-centric approach. Financial service providers can empower customers to engage with new technology and financial services in several ways.Blog
PHOTOS: The Face of the Working Poor
2014 marked the ninth consecutive CGAP Photo Contest, which highlights standout photography depicting financial inclusion. The contest helps raise awareness about the importance of increased access to financial services, and puts a face on the struggles of low-income entrepreneurs.Blog
From Access to Active Use: The Need for Customer Empowerment
Enabling customers to empower themselves calls for a more interactive and dynamic relationship between provider and customer.Blog
Investing in MENA’s Entrepreneurs: What is Really Needed?
A recent study by Wamda Research Lab highlights challenges preventing startups in the Middle East and North Africa from growing. One of the obstacles is access to appropriate funding.Blog
Mobile Money Users at Center of New GSMA Code of Conduct
The GSMA launched a Code of Conduct for Mobile Money Providers, and already eleven providers have endorsed it. The code is important to ensure that the customer experience is central to the responsible development of mobile money platforms.Blog
Five Bright Ideas for Responsible Digital Finance
Delivering financial services via digital means is growing at a blistering pace, and many are asking how can be accelerated to reach more underserved customers. At the same time, we must ensure that these services are being delivered fairly, transparently, and safely.Blog
Adaptations of the Graduation Approach: Risks and Opportunities
Coaching has proven to be a critical component of the Graduation Approach, but it is also complex to implement. Staffing constraints often cause this building block to be trimmed, sometimes at the expense of program results.Blog
The Seismic Implications of Digital Financial Inclusion
Policy makers, regulators, and supervisors in countries where digital financial inclusion is expanding exponentially see the financial inclusion promise clearly. Yet, they are grappling with the fast-changing risk picture.Blog
What Does it Take to Build Resilient Households in Burkina Faso?
“Resilience” seems to be the mot du jour among development practitioners these days. In the financial inclusion context, resilience refers to a person or family’s ability to weather shocks. But how do households in Burkina Faso define it?Blog
Filling the Smallholder Household Data Gap: A New Learning Agenda
There is a significant data gap when it comes to smallholders' demand for financial services. Filling this gap is going to require new efforts and a shared learning agenda.Blog