In alignment with Egypt’s efforts to strengthen African cooperation across all fields, the Central Bank of Egypt (CBE) hosted a delegation from the Financial Inclusion team at the Banque Centrale de Mauritanie (BCM) for a peer learning and knowledge exchange between the two counterparts, benefiting from Egypt’s leading experience in financial literacy, and women economic empowerment, in collaboration with the Alliance for Financial Inclusion (AFI).

The recent visit encompassed a comprehensive peer learning exchange program at the CBE’s premises, focusing on “The Implementation of Effective Financial Literacy Strategies”. The program demonstrated the factors that contributed to the success of financial literacy programs in Egypt, which played a major role in increasing financial inclusion rates in recent years to 71.5%, according to June 2024 indicators. Additionally, the program highlighted the role of policymakers and the importance of strategic partnerships with governmental entities implementing large-scale financial programs, as well as other relevant stakeholders in the financial literacy field, to ensure the continued collaboration of various state sectors, with the aim of raising financial awareness across all segments of society.

The Mauritanian delegation’s visit covered several topics, including Egypt’s journey towards promoting financial inclusion, while delving into the financial inclusion strategy and its implementation process, in addition to the importance of integrating financial literacy into all financial inclusion projects targeting various segments of the society, with women at the forefront. Notably, these initiatives include the Digital Village Savings and Loan Association project (Tahweesha), which is specifically designed to empower women economically.

During their visit, the Mauritanian delegation received a detailed demonstration on how to develop financial education content that suits all segments of society. The visit also covered the CBE’s FinTech and Innovation Strategy, its role in promoting digital financial literacy, as well as the digital financial literacy events and initiatives aiming to develop talents in the FinTech field. Furthermore, the delegation was briefed on CBE’s efforts in consumer protection and its actions to raise awareness among consumers about their rights.

A field visit was conducted to the “Nilepreneurs” initiative headquarters to observe how support is provided to entrepreneurs and small enterprises from ideation to launch. Additionally, they learned how the banking sector provides non-financial and advisory services through Business Development Services (BDS) Hubs. The delegation also visited the Egyptian Banking Institute (EBI), where they were introduced to the efforts of promoting financial literacy and various relevant initiatives, as well as being introduced to the Finlit Hub, a digital platform launched by the EBI, targeting children, youth, adults, and entrepreneurs, as well as financial service providers, through educational content on financial concepts and personal money management tailored to the needs of the target audience.