Informe de la Semana Africana de las Finanzas Inclusivas 2025

Training on Responsible Inclusive Finance

On October 13, as in any SAM conference, Cerise+SPTF offered a comprehensive full-day training session in English. Facilitated by Deputy Director Amelia Greenberg and Snezana Jovic, Head of Inclusive Finance, the session was a huge success with more than 120 participants!

This all-day training reviewed the fundamentals of Social and Environmental Performance Management (SEPM), starting with explaining the connection between SEPM and financial sustainability and then reviewing the comprehensive set of management practices that constitute responsible and inclusive finance, with a discussion of how these are similar and how they differ in an analog versus a digital context.

Participants learned how to use Cerise+SPTF assessment tools, i.e. the SPI social audit tools and the DFS Standards assessment tool. They were also introduced to Environmental Performance Management.

The facilitators also presented the e-learning courses on all those subjects for the participants who were interested to go further.

And finally, the training dived deeply into best practices in customer outcomes management with the practical experience shared by Arya Murali, Impact Lead at Gojo.

Training on DFS Standards for Catapult Inclusion Africa 2025

On Thursday, October 16th, Amelia Greenberg led a one-hour training for nine members of the Catapult: Inclusion Africa 2025 cohort. Participants were all members of the leadership teams of fintech companies committed to delivering financial services to underserved and unbanked populations across Africa. Ms. Greenberg discussed the consumer protection risks that are inherent to digital finance and explained how the Digital Financial Services (DFS) Standards are an important tool to help fintechs understand and mitigate these risks. Our thanks to the Luxembourg House of Financial Technology (LHoFT) for organizing this training.

Innovation, Competitiveness, and Inclusion.

On October 15, Amelia Greenberg moderated a panel with speakers from Flow Global, Advans Côte d'Ivoire, BFA Global, and 4G Capital: “Balancing innovation & inclusion: staying competitive without losing the human touch.”

Key Takeways (abstract):

• It is important to meet people where they are​.
• Inclusion requires flexibility and ongoing evolution in methodologies used to reach customers; not everyone has the same needs or preferences, and the context changes over time​
• When designing technology, think very hard about how your target customer will interact with it.
• In early markets, success depends on how well you anchor digital solutions in trusted human networks.
• Human touch manages confusion and dissatisfaction better than tech​nology.

Disability Inclusion: A New Frontier for Inclusive Financial Systems.

As we collaborate with the Barrier Free Finance Initiative (BFFI) on integrating disability inclusion into the Universal Standards, we participated to the training held on October 16, facilitated by Paul Surreaux.

“Persons with disabilities represent 16% of the global population. Yet they remain among the most underserved when it comes to access to financial services. Addressing this issue is not only a matter of rights and equity, but also a powerful lever to access a new market among the most vulnerable, drive innovation, adapt to evolving legal frameworks, and build inclusive financial systems for all.”

The session delivered:

• Insight into the barriers persons with disabilities face in accessing financial services.
• Key enablers that drive increased financial inclusion of persons with disabilities.
• A clear understanding of the business case for disability inclusion, and how embracing
• an inclusive culture benefits all service users.
• Concrete strategies to start or strengthen disability inclusion within your organization

Building Trust: A Roadmap for a Successful Due Diligence Process.

On Friday, October 17, Cerise+SPTF was invited to co-facilitate the workshop proposed by ADA, BRS and Microfact: Objective: help FSPs gain practical insights to understand investors’ due diligence practices with experts from the field.

Cerise+SPTF and other experts from the field (Incofin Investment Management, and Banca Etica) presented the various facets of a due diligence process and why they are important: SEPM assessment, governance check and financial analysis.

Unlocking Sustainable Funding for Inclusive Finance

On October 14, Paola D'Angelo was part of the panel session “Unlocking sustainable funding for inclusive finance: what works and what needs to change”. Diversity of perspectives from the inclusive finance sector brought together to discuss the challenges and opportunities to unlock sustainable funding for the inclusive finance sector. Are new and innovative investment approaches and structures needed to achieve and scale long-term impact and financial inclusion in emerging markets? Or are blended finance and PPP still the most appropriate tools for financial inclusion and structural long term development? Which are the main forces behind local ecosystem development when international aid and investors priorities are shifting due to geopolitical circumstances? These are some of the questions the panellists addressed in this thought-provoking discussion.

Key Takeaways:

• Financial inclusion is about empowerment. Financial inclusion is not just serving vulnerable populations - It’s about empowering them by designing innovative, low-interest, context-specific solutions that enable people to thrive.
• Mobilizing long-term, catalytic capital becomes more effective when local ecosystems are equipped to absorb and deploy resources effectively through technical assistance and capacity building.
• Inclusive finance is a leverage to make economies more efficient and resilient. Inclusive finance is an objective in itself, but it is also a lens through which targeted blending of capital can deliver more effectively.
• “Africa empowering Africa”. With $2.4 trillion in local institutional capital, the continent holds the resources to drive its own development. Unlocking this potential requires shifting risk perceptions, collaboration between local and international investors, and leveraging innovative blended finance models, technology, and regulatory alignment.

Connecting with Social Investors

Paola D'Angelo and Manon Loison also organized a luncheon with social investors, with speakers from the African Development Bank (AfDB).

Cerise+SPTF coordinates the Social Investor Working Group's efforts to advance inclusive impact finance and to establish new partnerships globally. In this framework, we invited investors, MFIs and development agencies to meet over a business lunch to brainstorm with Grace Kyokunda, CIO AfDB, Julian Mwika, Senior Consultant AfDB, and Mkola Tambwe, Regional Principal Investment Officer AfDB.

AfDB’s “Unlock Africa’s Capital” vision calls for deeper collaboration with private investors, and the heartfelt participation of private investors showed that they are eager to answer this call. With programs like Africa Digital Financial Inclusion Facility (ADFI), Affirmative Finance Action for Women in Africa (AFAWA), and with climate adaptation and green finance as strategic themes, African Development Bank Group is keen to establish innovative financial inclusion projects and explore co-investment opportunities.

Connecting with SEPM Pros and Close Partners

We were delighted to take the opportunities of SAM to meet with our SEPM Pros network members and close partners attending the conference.

In total, 8 SEPM Pros and 2 close partners joined our informal gathering.

The objective was to thank everyone for the incredible work accomplished in the field, and to enjoy informal discussions about our latest news, ongoing projects, and potential future collaborations. And of course, we made sure to have a great time together over a drink!