Tanzania has recently witnessed a remarkable transformation in the financial sector, leveraging the rapid growth of the adoption of technologies in developing and distributing financial services and products. Despite these developments, the adult population's access to and usage of formal financial services remains unevenly distributed across the country.
To address this challenge, Tanzania embarked on a national collaborative approach between the public and private sector in advancing policies and innovative financial solutions that expand outreach to unserved and underserved communities in the country. Implementing these efforts, among others, helped increase access to and usage of formal financial services in Tanzania. According to the Fin-Scope Survey 2023 results, the level of access and use of formal financial services increased to 89% and 76% in 2023 from 86% and 65% in 2017, respectively. However, despite the success, the level of exclusion remains high for population segments such as rural residents, smallholder farmers, youth, and women.
To continue addressing financial inclusion challenges in the country, the National Council for financial inclusion through its Secretariat prepares a 5-year National Financial Inclusion Framework (NFIF). The Framework provides a strategic roadmap toward financial inclusion targets through a Public and Private sector partnership approach. The First Framework was from 2013-2017, while the second framework ran from 2018-2022. The third framework runs from 2023 to 2028 (Hyperlink).
The implementation of the frameworks augments the national goals for inclusive economy stipulated in the Tanzania Development Vision 2025, Zanzibar Development Vision 2050, and Financial Sector Development Master Plan 2020/21-2029/30.
