Blog

A crowded market in Afghanistan Photo credit: Sayed Habib Bidell

Rebuilding Gaza’s Financial Sector: Lessons from Afghanistan

Rebuilding Gaza’s financial sector will be essential for recovery. Funders should strengthen institutions, restore liquidity, and support local capacity. Afghanistan's drawing Afghanistan’s coordinated, locally-led reconstruction offers an example.

A farmer works in a field in Colombia Photo credit: Lorena Velasco via Communication for Development Ltd

The Most Undervalued Investment Class: Why Inclusive Adaptation Finance Deserves More Attention

Less than 1% of global climate finance is currently going toward community adaptation, leaving behind low-income households on the frontlines of climate change. Inclusive finance presents a solution, but it is not yet attracting the investment interest that it deserves. This blog explores how private sector involvement can help to close the inclusive finance gap, and what will be needed to ensure that private capital can move faster and reach further.

People move through a flooded street during monsoon season Photo credit: Somraj Sahu

When Funders Unite: A Financing Stack for Climate Resilience

When it comes to resilience financing, there is no ‘one-size-fits-all’: different types of financial institutions need different things at different times. Here we unveil our ‘Climate Resilience Financing Stack’ – a vision for what a well-financed, climate-resilient, inclusive financial sector requires.

A man pays via mobile money at a market in Brazil Photo credit: Emiliano Capozoli

Financial Health: Driving Growth in Latin America and the Caribbean

Account ownership in LAC has surged, but true progress means translating access into financial health. Banks can lead by using technology to build trust, design customer-first solutions, and expand inclusive digital ecosystems.

A banana vendor at a Brazil market Photo credit: Emiliano Capozoli

How Digital Innovation is Powering Latin America’s Financial Inclusion

Digital innovation, inclusive fintechs, and progressive policies are transforming financial inclusion in the LAC region. With systems like PIX and open finance, millions now access, save, invest, and transact digitally, driving growth and reducing inequality.

Women farmers in Senegal Photo credit: Daniella Van Leggelo-Padilla

Rethinking Evidence: When Does Inclusive Finance Work and for Whom

This leadership essay reassesses what we think we know as a sector, evaluating the strengths and weaknesses of the existing evidence base and proposing new methods for building a better one.

A young man works at a computer Photo credit: K M Asad / World Bank

Innovation Requires New Skills – Are Regulators Hiring Accordingly?

Regulating innovation requires regulators to acquire new skillsets, most urgently around data and cybersecurity. Are they hiring experts in those fields? New CGAP analysis looking at leading innovative authorities provides some answers.

A man rides a motorbike on a rural dirt road Photo credit: Allison Shelley

Towards Right-Fit IMM: Orienting Around Outcomes

Achieving outcomes orientation in inclusive finance investing starts with understanding what shapes it. CGAP’s emerging framework highlights the factors influencing outcomes orientation in IMM — and where the capital value chain can focus to make it stronger.

A young woman sits by her sewing machine Photo credit: Mohammad Saiful Islam

Unlocking Invisible Barriers to Women’s Inclusion in East Africa

Invisible gender norms shape how everyone in the financial system behaves. CGAP & FSD Network research in Rwanda, Tanzania, and Uganda shows that making finance work for women means understanding those norms and how to intervene to change market actor behavior.

an indian woman holding her pet dog as she walks through a flooded street Photo: Somraj Sahu

Physical Climate Risk Assessments: Understanding the Latest Resources

Physical Climate Risk Assessments are essential for financial service providers to prepare for climate-related threats. There are now a range of open-source tools that can help. But with so many options, it can be hard to know where to start. We provide a run-down of the tools for FSPs and how to find the best fit.

A woman in her shop Photo credit: HOC

How Morocco’s New WFI Coalition Redefines Business-as-Usual

Morocco’s Women’s Financial Inclusion Coalition is a bold, coordinated effort to close the country’s gender gap in finance by aligning public and private actors, linking policy to practice, and driving systemic, lasting change for women.

Drought in Vietnam, a herd of sheep in the distance Photo credit: Thao Vu Xuan

Climate Risk Assessment: Three Questions FSPs Should Ask

As climate events become more frequent and intense, inclusive FSPs are increasingly being asked to conduct Physical Climate Risk Assessments (PCRAs) by regulators, investors, and other stakeholders. We suggest three key questions FSPs should ask to ensure that PCRAs support a resilient evolution.

People practice vegetables and fish farming Photo credit: Masudur Rahaman

How Can Inclusive FSPs Adapt to Climate Change With Win-Win Strategies?

The current climate responses of many financial service providers often result in one party losing out. But win-win is possible. This blog advises how inclusive FSPs can reorient their climate responses towards win-win outcomes for themselves and their customers.

Men work in a salt flat Photo credit: Dan Reyes

What National Strategies Tell Us About Responsible Finance

National Financial Inclusion Strategies remain a key policy tool to expand financial inclusion. By looking at what different NFIS prioritize, we can see how financial inclusion strategies are beginning to shape more responsible financial ecosystems.

Women in rural Sindh, Pakistan, walk uphill with baskets on their heads Photo credit: Ozair Dogar

Building Climate-Resilient Microfinance: Lessons from Pakistan

Here, we share three key lessons in resilience from Pakistan’s microfinance sector to help other microfinance institutions (MFIs) avoid climate change undermining their operations and commitment to driving financial inclusion.

A woman sits among food goods in her corner shop in Lagos, Nigeria Photo credit: Temilade Adelaja via Communication for Development Ltd

Why Merchants Still Choose Cash in Sub-Saharan Africa

Digital merchant payments remain limited in Sub-Saharan Africa because current systems impose costs, frictions, and risks that don’t align with the realities of informal, low-margin MSMEs, making cash the more rational choice.

A woman vendor at her market stall Photo credit: GIZ

Beyond Borders: Expanding Financial Inclusion Through e-Commerce

Cross-border e-commerce enables women to expand their markets, reach new clients, and trade in greater volumes, while doing business remotely, saving time and improving efficiency. These transactions create a financial footprint that can help women qualify for loans, insurance, and other financial products.

A farmer talks on his mobile phone standing in the field Photo credit: CGAP

The Power of Microdata From Global Findex

In this blog, CGAP goes beyond the aggregate data in Global Findex and uses its microdata to examine financial inclusion at the individual level. Here’s how we are doing it and why.

A rural couple and their goat in Indonesia sit in a dark barn Photo credit: ALEXANDRINO LEI AIROSA

Beyond Account Access: Converting Financial Inclusion into Resilience

Account ownership in LMICs has nearly doubled since 2011, but financial resilience remains stubbornly low: just 56% of adults can access emergency funds within 30 days. Achieving true progress on financial resilience will mean moving beyond account ownership as the primary metric of success.

A Brazilian farmer looks at his phone Photo credit: Emiliano Capozoli

Six Ways Open Finance Can Drive Competition and Inclusion

Open finance can make financial markets more inclusive and competitive, but only if designed intentionally. CGAP highlights six policy levers to ensure it benefits low-income and underserved people.