Kampala, Uganda | THE INDEPENDENT | The Managing Director of Absa Bank Uganda, Mumba Kalifungwa has called for creativity of purpose driven innovations to enhance equitable service delivery for sustainable growth in the banking sector.
Mumba said this at the recently held 12th Edition of the Annual CEO Forum 2021, held under the theme, ‘Innovating for Shared Value – Putting Purpose into Practice.’
“For us to remain relevant now and in the future, we must create an ecosystem that serves customers at their places of convenience,” he said.
He added that financial services like mobile money have greatly contributed to the banking sector since a lot of payments are made through that platform.
According to a World Bank report, more than half of Uganda’s adult population now has access to an account at a formal financial institution. This is almost twice as many as in the entry and fast penetration of mobile money is the main reason for the increase, having allowed over 8 million Ugandans to conduct financial transactions.
Only 16% of the adult population keeps their savings at formal deposit taking institutions, including banks, microfinance institutions and savings and credit institutions.
Up to 60% of adult Ugandans still keep their savings at home and in the form of assets such as animals.
Moreover, a much larger share of the population, reaching more than 65%, are unable to access formal financial institutions for credit.
Mumba said as the bank, they are providing social change beyond profit motivation.