Advancing Financial Inclusion of Refugees and (other) FDP

Advancing Financial Inclusion of Refugees and (other) FDP

Start Year: 2019

Objectives:

To foster collaboration, cooperation and knowledge sharing among all parties working to provide and/or extend financial services for refugees and Forcibly Displaced People (FDP). The AG has been created by the e-MFP Secretariat given the increasing interest and involvement of e-MFP members in the topic.

Refugees and other FDP as result of conflicts, political crises and increasingly climate change, are among the most vulnerable populations and are a growing reality. These people experience challenges both on their journeys and on their (expected or unexpected) arrival destination, and while access to financial services is not the primary need on arrival, it soon becomes crucial to be able to meet basic needs. On the other hand, social organisations, including those addressing financial exclusion, find themselves dealing with more and more cross-border and internal displacement situations and need to be prepared to meet the needs of diversified groups of people.

Activities:

e-MFP Secretariat manages an online platform hosted by UNCDF with the primary aim of enabling and encouraging exchange of knowledge and experiences between members and is involved in projects/initiatives developed by relevant stakeholders in order to promote them among e-MFP members and the sector as a whole and to contribute directly or through its members to the knowledge creation and sharing on the topic.

Join the online platform - https://uncdf.dgroups.io/g/e-MFP.refugeeAG

Contribute to the discussion, share your work and experience, and learn from others. Participation in the online platform hosted by UNCDF is open to all upon registration.

In 2023, initiatives included:

Community of Practice (CoP) of the Roadmap to the Financial Inclusion of Forcibly Displaced Persons

The Roadmap to the Sustainable and Responsible Financial Inclusion of Forcibly Displaced Persons (FDPs) was published by a multistakeholder alliance during the first Global Refugee Forum in December 2019. It aims to contribute with a set of voluntary policy recommendations and to define roles and responsibilities for implementing this action agenda to expand access to and usage of appropriate financial services for FDPs.

The CoP was established in 2022 to raise awareness on the topic and develop concrete recommendations to inform the international decision-making processes; further strengthen dialogue and synergies between actors from different sectors and locations; and to become a platform for information-sharing and identifying joint solutions.

MFC/e-MFP Working Group on Business Development Services for migrants and refugees

Following Microfinance Centre (MFC)’s several projects offering business development services to migrants and refugees in Europe and building on the long experience of several e-MFP members and partners in developing countries in the provision of financial and non-financial services to FDPs, MFC and e-MFP established a collaborative group focusing on BDS for migrants and refugees. Its primary objective has been to facilitate the exchange of best practices and foster connections among various stakeholders engaged in BDS for migrants and refugees across the world.

During 2023, three workshops with group members and invited external experts were organised discussing, among other topics, the main barriers faced by migrant/refugee entrepreneurs, the features of successful BDS strategies and programmes, the relevance of monitoring performance and measuring outcomes and impact of microfinance and BDS initiatives targeting migrants and refugees, and the strategies for engaging and promoting collaboration between different stakeholders in the assumption that only an inclusive approach to financial services and a holistic support system, incorporating non-profit, social enterprises and financial services providers can effectively contribute to the financial and social inclusion of migrants and refugees.