France gives BSP ₧41-M grant to push financial inclusion in PHL

THE Bangko Sentral ng Pilipinas (BSP) announced on Thursday that it has received a grant from the Agence Française de Développement (AFD) to further strengthen its capacity to foster financial inclusion in the country.

In a virtual press briefing, BSP Governor Benjamin Diokno said the country received a 700,000-euro grant or around P41 million from the French organization.

The grant will fund a technical assistance (TA) program to support the BSP'S efforts to leverage on technology for the effective regulation of digital finance, promote digital financial literacy of rural and women-owned businesses, and contribute to public policy dialogue on agricultural insurance.

“we welcome this maiden technical assistance program of the AFD for the BSP. This endeavor demonstrates our organizations' shared commitment to advance financial inclusion in the country through responsible digital innovations. The BSP looks forward to a fruitful collaboration with AFD as we implement the program in the next five years.” Diokno said.

The grant also complements the Inclusive Finance Development Program (IFDP), a program which AFD has been supporting since 2019 alongside the Asian Development Bank (ADB), through a 100 million euro sovereign policy-based loan to the Philippines.

The IFDP contributes to the overall objective of inclusive growth and sustainable development in the country, by supporting financial inclusion efforts, especially those from the low-income and rural sectors.

“France welcomes this new milestone in our bilateral relationship with the Philippines. we are keen to support the Government of the Philippines, through AFD, in strategic reforms towards digital transformation and inclusion. The Covid-19 pandemic gave rise to challenging situations, but also opportunities to leverage on digital technologies to improve financial sector services that would ultimately benefit Filipinos from all walks of life,” said French Ambassador Michèle Boccoz.