regional forum on " emerging opportunities and challenges of financial inclusion in asia - pacific region " kathmandu, 9 november 2016 keynote address by dr. chiranjibi nepal, governor, nepal rastra bank chairman of apraca and deputy governor of bangladesh bank mr. shitangshu kumar sur chowdhury deputy governors of nepal rastra bank mr. chintamani siwakoti and mr. shiba raj shrestha, chairman of national bank of agriculture and rural development dr. harsh kumar bhanwala, eminent resource persons, executive directors from nepal rastra bank, chiefs of financial institutions of nepal, forum participants, friends from the media, distinguished guests, ladies and gentlemen, it gives me immense pleasure to address this august gathering at this opening session of this regional forum on " emerging opportunities and challenges of financial inclusion in asia pacific region ". the theme of this forum is something that is close to our hearts, and is a very topical issue in recent days. the need to address this issue has never been more significant primarily due to the benefits it will bring to our countries. i am confident that this forum will help in deepening the understandings on the emerging issues of financial inclusion. ladies and gentlemen, now, let me move on to the main theme of this forum. financial inclusion has emerged as a key global priority. governments, international agencies, academics and the private sector have all brought financial inclusion to the top of the agenda. the g20 made the topic one of its pillars at the 2009 pittsburgh summit. financial inclusion has been recognized in the istanbul programme of action and the sustainable development goals as a key enabler for a host of development objectives. likewise, the world bank in 2015 also laid out a vision for achieving universal financial access by 2020 which means that basic access to the formal financial system – for example, through debit cards or mobile money – should be possible for everyone. overall, gaps in access to finance are slowly being lowered, thanks to the implementation of financial inclusion policies in different countries. between 2011 and 2014, the global unbanked population dropped by 20 percent, from 2. 5 billion to 2 billion. still, more than half of adults in the poorest 40 percent of households in developing countries were still without accounts in 2014. though some degree of success was achieved by financial institutions in rendering services to millions of excluded people throughout asia - pacific, the region is still home to an estimated 1. 2 billion people who do not have access to a bank account or formal

many have identified trusted intermediaries with access to the target group to deliver financial education. this approach can be effective, provided that the goals of the intermediary are aligned with the financial education goals, and that the staff are properly trained and incentivized to provide financial education. countries need to design programs to ensure people can make sound financial decisions, select financial products, which best suit their needs, and know how to use related channels, such as atms or mobile banking. however, more research and evaluation is necessary to further explore the relationship between financial literacy and financial inclusion, and to identify the impact of financial education initiatives on financial inclusion. ladies and gentlemen, with respect to technological advances, digital technologies are important for inclusion, as they enable innovative and lower - cost business models for providing financial services, making it viable to reach the poor. about 260 million unbanked adults in the developing world receive private sector wage payments in cash. switching to digital payments could potentially save significant time and resources for businesses and workers alike. likewise, agricultural payments present another chance to expand access to the formal financial system, as roughly 440 million unbanked adults in the developing world are paid in cash for farm goods. by moving away from cash and using digital payments to distribute social benefits and wages, governments can reduce costs and leakage. in the developing world, about 120 million unbanked adults receive government transfers in cash, according to the world bank ’ s global findex database 2014. at the same time, more than 31 million unbanked adults in emerging countries are paid government wages in cash. digitizing these payments could bring millions of adults into the financial system for the first time. likewise, 355 million adults in developing countries with an account send or obtain domestic remittances in cash or over the counter. further, 1. 3 billion adults with an account in developing countries pay their trash, water, and electric bills in cash, and over half a billion adults with an account in developing countries pay school fees in cash. access to digital payments generates opportunities to provide more convenient and affordable payment options. as we continue to adopt innovative financial inclusion models, we need to be positioned at the forefront of these developments in order to identify and manage the associated risks. more importantly, we need to be equipped with thorough knowledge of innovative business models to develop an enabling ecosystem for innovative financial inclusion to flourish in a safe and stable manner. ladies and gentlemen, allow me now to share with you some of