ADB urged to better capitalize on digitalization in post-pandemic era

The Korea Times

The Korea Times

Finance

Thu, November 30, 2023 | 03:57

Economy

ADB urged to better capitalize on digitalization in post-pandemic era

Posted : 2023-05-03 17:04

Updated : 2023-05-03 17:58

Participants of a seminar, titled "Financial Inclusion to Accelerate COVID-19 Recovery: Lessons in Evaluations," listen to Felipe Medalla, second from left, the governor of the Philippines' central bank, during the annual meeting of the Asian Development Bank (ADB) at Songdo Convensia in Incheon's Songdo International Business District, Wednesday. Korea Times photo by Yi Whan-woo

By Yi Whan-woo

INCHEON ― The Asian Development Bank (ADB) is urged to capitalize more on digital acceleration in the post-pandemic era on its mission to reduce poverty and bolster growth in Asia, international experts on finance, technology and sustainable development said Wednesday.

The experts advised the ADB to work closer with the private sector, to help improve productivity in the region's developing countries, and to ensure that software, devices and other up-to-date financial technologies are not misused to exploit financially vulnerable people.

Their advice came during a panel discussion at the ADB-hosted seminar, titled "Financial Inclusion to Accelerate COVID-19 Recovery: Lessons in Evaluations," at Songdo Convensia in Incheon's Songdo International Business District.

Moderated by ADB Director General of Independent Evaluation Emmanuel Jimenez, the seminar was a part of the program for the ADB's 56th annual meeting running this week from Tuesday to Friday.

"One quick advice is to work with the people on the ground … because if you work with the government, they give you a bit of a rosier picture while the private sector gives a real picture," said Sonia Kabir, the founder of tech fund SBK Tech Ventures focusing on emerging markets, especially Bangladesh.

She was one of four panelists, including Felipe Medalla, governor of the Philippines' central bank; Clemence Landers, a senior fellow at U.S.-headquartered non-profit think tank Center for Global Development; and Christine Engstrom, director of ADB's Financial Institution Division.

Kabir addressed the growing importance of combining digitization and finance, saying finance was "one of the things that didn't go backward" during the years of the pandemic amid a greater reliance on technology.

Medalla said raising productivity is crucial "to improve infrastructure and make people live a better life."

Landers said the world faces the challenge of making fintech "a source of financial resilience for its users, not a source of financial instability."

Citing a survey, she said those who were new to digital financial services in developing countries were exposed to fraud or scams during the pandemic and that consumer protection is becoming increasingly vital.

"That's the challenge lying ahead of us and what the ADB needs to be part of," Landers said.

Engstrom responded that the ADB will continue listening to both private and public sectors in its partner countries and try to understand what gaps are in their path to financial inclusion.

She went on to say that the ADB is "tailoring financial inclusion to the different countries' circumstances and making sure to reach the financially excluded in a very prudent manner."

yistory@koreatimes.co.kr