Business Focus Story – Financial inclusion in the Pacific: The power of collaboration and technology

Access to credit remains a significant hurdle in Pacific Island Countries (PICs), complicated by regional challenges, such as communal land ownership and the absence of traditional credit bureaus. This further restricts the financial flexibility of individuals and businesses alike. In Samoa, almost half of the population lack access to formal finance, and savings rates are lower than comparable PICs.

In response to these challenges, in 2021 started working to improve the availability of digital financial services in the Pacific. Collaborating with the United Nations Capital Development Fund’s (UNCDF) Pacific Digital Economy Program (PDEP), MDF and partners set up a ‘fintech innovation challenge,’ to promote financial inclusion in Fiji, Tonga, Samoa and the Solomon Islands. The MDF Samoa team supported the design and implementation of the challenge in Samoa.