UNCDF launched Cash-in/cash-out Ethiopia Project

The project will strengthen the reach and quality of cash-in/cash-out networks through which customers can exchange cash for electronic value or vice versa.

Strengthening Cash-In/Cash Out (CICO) networks and performance measurement in Ethiopia is a way to build up agent networks and improve access to financial services.

The project aims to improve the reach and quality of CICO networks in Ethiopia through ecosystem-wide CICO boot camps, technology solutions, and the development of a CICO measurement dashboard for industry players, including the regulatory body. 

The project also aims to empower different ecosystem stakeholders to generate meaningful insights and make evidence-based decisions to ensure the inclusion and participation of unserved and underserved constituents in the digital economy. It also aligns with the government's priority of achieving a 70% account ownership in 2025, per the revised National Financial Inclusion Strategy II.

The project, which will run for two years, will focus on several activities.

The first activity is a CICO bootcamp that will train about 15 service providers, including mobile money providers and their agents, retail banks, microfinance institutions and smaller financial service providers in foundational and specialized digital money distribution aspects such as gender intentional design and technology provider selection.

The second activity, a Digital Distributor Incubator, will enable CICO managers and technology firms to test the viability of their ideas to determine valuable business outcomes. Selected service providers (CICO providers and technology firms) with the most viable solutions will receive financial award and will work with financial service providers to bring their solutions to market. Through this activity, more sustainable solutions can scale faster, offering better services, lower costs in networks, and limit the amount of dormancy in the agent networks.

“Reliable and trustworthy cash-in/cash-out networks play an important role in broadening and deepening digital financial inclusion in developing financial markets and thus accelerating progress towards the SDGs,” Ms. Abibatou Wane, IOM Chief of Mission, who spoke on behalf of the UN Country Team, said.

Speaking at the launch of the project, Solomon Damtew, A/Director-Payment Systems and Settlements Directorate, National Bank of Ethiopia, said “By improving the quality and reach of cash-in/cash-out networks, we can create a more competitive and innovative financial sector that better serves the needs of all Ethiopians.”