s decision to transition from consumption credit to a more productive credit as the later will help contribute to the production capacity of our economy and contribute to the stability of your bank and ultimately sustainable economic development in namibia. 16. ladies and gentleman 17. on 28 october 2010, i ended my speech with the chinese adage “ a journey of thousand miles begins with the first step ” i believe we have taken the first step toward financial inclusion. we have travelled about 500 miles of that journey, we still have some more miles to get there, but getting there we shall. getting there, however, requires that all of us should continue to work hard as a team to create a sustainable and an inclusive financial sector for our children and their children ’ s future. i believe, letshego is one of the trailblazers on this journey, we look forward to continue travelling with you. i thank you for your kind attention iipumbu shiimi.

regulate the operations of credit bureaus in namibia. prior to 2014, there was no regulatory framework to regulate and protect consumers against unfair treatment by credit bureaus. the regulations provide for a dispute resolution mechanism in the event of disputes arising between consumers, credit bureaus and credit providers. 6. more importantly, the financial services adjudicator bill which will handle complaints against financial institutions has been developed and tabled in the national assembly. the adjudicator will cater for consumer concerns related to both banks and non - bank financial institutions under one roof. 7. bank of namibia and namifisa are also currently working on the consumer credit bill which will regulate all consumer credit related issues and consolidate outdated laws regulating credit such as the credit agreements act of 1980 and the usury act of 1968. the second issue is financial literacy and capability. 8. the importance of financial literacy cannot be overemphasized. there is a saying that knowledge is power. it is thus important that we empower our consumers of financial services with the knowledge in order for them to make informed financial decisions. the financial literacy of the average namibian above the age of 16 was calculated as 42. 75 % in 2013. indicating that we have some kilometers to travel to make the majority of namibian more financially literate. 9. on this front, the collective efforts of the partners of the financial literacy initiative under the ministry of finance have done a lot of work to educate consumers and this work should be intensified to close the gap. the fli is currently planning a follow - up survey this year which will show us how much progress we have made since the last survey in 2013. access to financial services and products 10. access to quality financial services and products has been identified as a catalyst for economic growth and poverty alleviation, both in developing and advanced countries. the potential of the financial sector to contribute meaningfully to economic growth and social progression of any economy depends on the full participation of individuals and firms in that sector. it is for this reason that a number of initiatives have been introduced in our financial sector to ensure access to financial services and products. 11. the ultimate aim of such interventions are to enhance access to banking and financial services for the previously excluded members of our society. high fees and charges contributes to the exclusion of the majority of the society from participating in the formal financial system. for this reason, two targeted interventions were introduced to deal with the issue of high fees and charges in order to allow access