Policymakers, regulators and supervisors in emerging markets are under pressure to develop, implement and enforce policy and regulation that conforms to global best practice but is effective locally despite considerable constraints. Cenfri leverages the legal background, policymaking and regulatory experience of key team members and assists via direct regulatory development or policy guidance but more often through technical assistance and skills building.
Much of our work has been in the financial sector across Africa, Asia and Latin America. This includes an impressive “regulating for innovation” portfolio in support of financial sector regulators who are grappling with innovation or market development mandates in regulatory environments that do not effectively accommodate the range of risks presented by new financial service innovations. We also support improved digital and data governance in Africa. Examples range from creating a set of scenarios on the possible digital futures in Africa, to developing a data-sharing policy for the Government of Rwanda and researching fit-for-context open finance solutions for Africa.
Innovation can enable insurance to become a powerful engine of growth and development across the continent, but achieving this requires that market players and regulators work together to build an ecosystem in which responsible innovation can thrive. For regulators, doing so means not only understanding the current state of innovation
Nothing illustrates the incredible power of data-driven decision-making more than the recent COVID-19 pandemic. Lamenting the disparities in genomic sequencing data from high versus lower-middle income countries, Professor Happi, from the African Centre of Excellence for Genomics of Infectious Diseases in Nigeria, has talked about the pressure they experienced early
The past decade has seen the emergence of digital platforms, which connect buyers and sellers of goods and services and allow them to seamlessly transact with one another online. The platform economy is expected to grow to USD405 billion by 2030, more than double from USD204 billion in 2018, with
Expanded smartphone access in Africa underpins evolving consumer behaviour. Smartphone uptake in Africa is growing rapidly. GSMA reported that smartphone adoption in sub-Saharan Africa reached 45% in 2018 – nearly half a billion people – and is projected to reach 66% by 2025. To put that further into perspective, 623
Although Kevin has a master’s degree in science and had been teaching ICT to secondary school students in Kenya for over 25 years, he scored just 61% on a digital skills test run by Cenfri. This test asked participants to research and digitally present a day trip to Nairobi for German
FinTecHub and Cenfri are pleased to announce the signing of their new Memorandum of Understanding (MoU). This MoU underlines the shared interest of FinTecHub and Cenfri in developing and strengthening African fintech, and Rwandan fintech in particular. FinTecHub is Rwanda’s dedicated virtual accelerator that supports selected Rwandan fintech start-ups to
COVID-19 is leaving no country unaffected. For the development community and national policymakers, this creates a clear imperative: Wield whatever tools will be most effective to provide immediate relief and, more importantly, support longer-term adaptation to break the downward spiral. But this is easier said than done in sub-Saharan Africa
Central banks across the developed and developing world have begun considering the possibility of implementing a Central Bank Digital Currency (CBDC) to enhance drivers for economic growth and financial sector development such as financial inclusion, digital financial services and national payment system (NPS) efficiency. CBDC is a digital representation of
In 2019, one in five youth in Africa were not in employment, education or training [1]. Each year, 10 to 12 million youth enter the workforce [2], while only 3 million formal jobs are created. The emergence of the COVID-19 pandemic and a deterioration in African growth prospects is expected
Nigeria is Africa’s most populous country and one of the largest e-hailing markets in Africa. By the end of 2020, the country’s digital ride-hailing or e-hailing market is expected to generate USD292 million in revenue and account for 15% of the African continent’s 48.6 million e-hailing user base. Uber’s entry
App usage in Nigeria, Kenya and South Africa data signals digitalisation of Africa’s economic exchanges Nigeria, Kenya and South Africa are leading digital app markets in Africa. The relatively high levels of app usage across these markets are driven by expanded smartphone penetration, as well as higher levels of access
