Asian Development Bank to host 11th Asia-Pacific Financial Inclusion Forum
The eleventh annual Asia-Pacific Financial Inclusion Forum will begin today.
Cohosted by the Asian Development Bank (ADBI), the Asia Pacific Economic Cooperation Business Advisory Council and the Foundation for Development Cooperation, the event will gather policy makers and financial representatives to develop post-pandemic economic recovery strategies.
Among the myriad issues discussed, expect the forum to mainly focus on combatting poverty and reinforcing digital engagement throughout Asia and the Pacific. A likely policy recommendation for aiding these countries is an expansion of digital infrastructure, including widening reliable internet access and improving power grids in underdeveloped regions. ADBI is likely to consider loans to poorer countries aimed at expanding this infrastructure in order to guarantee access to financial networks moving forward, as many of the countries hit the hardest by the pandemic are largely rural landmasses or smaller islands with little technological infrastructure.
Additional attention is likely to be paid to reinforcing communication between the central banks of the region. The pandemic exposed weaknesses in regional economic and financial cooperation. Thus, an expansion of communication and cooperation infrastructure—including international reporting and information sharing mechanisms between regional financial institutions—is likely to guarantee regional economic inclusion moving forward.
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