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Digital Transformation & Data

Cenfri contributes to building the fundamentals of welfare-enhancing digital economies. We prioritise digital transformation that is inclusive, sustainable, opportunity-creating and has appropriate safeguards. Digital transformation underpins much of our work and ranges from payments digitalisation to digital economy diagnostics, and digital skills assessments to direct digitalisation support.

Cenfri also collaborates with policymakers and other public and private sector stakeholders in data-driven decision-making that is calibrated to the data available and is designed to strengthen the existing skills and data governance processes within these organisations. The Rwanda Economy Digitalisation Programme is our flagship evidence-informed policymaking and data-for-decisions intervention, but we have considerable experience in using evidence to generate insights and inform policymaking and business decision-making with a view to improved economic development outcomes. Our expertise in data, payments and digital identity enables us to contribute to current DPI (digital public infrastructure) conversations.

Making technical assistance work
Digital Transformation & Data

Making technical assistance work in Africa: Three keys to success for financial services providers

It’s not easy delivering data-driven financial services to the financially excluded in Africa’s emerging economies. That’s why technical assistance (TA) can be essential to the success of the region’s financial service providers (FSPs). Comprised of various forms of non-financial assistance provided by outside specialists, TA can take the form of

Read More »
16 October, 2019
Digital Transformation & Data

Inside-out: The good and the bad of insight2impact

Does this situation sound familiar? A development program runs its course, generating lots of intriguing insights and impacts – and experiencing its fair share of setbacks. These successes and failures could provide useful guidance to other initiatives. But once the program is over and the funders and implementers have moved

Read More »
2 October, 2019
E-hailing
Digital Transformation & Data

Exploring Africa’s digital platforms: Insurance in e-hailing

In recent years the platform economy has rapidly transformed various economic sectors such as hospitality, ecommerce and transportation. One of the most important subsectors of the platform economy is e-hailing. E-hailing platforms connect passengers and drivers of cars, taxis or any other form of transportation using virtual devices such as

Read More »
5 September, 2019
Digital Transformation & Data

Africa’s digital future: Policy scenarios

What could Africa look like in 2048?  The digital revolution is gaining ground across Africa. Ambitions around an increasingly digital and connected Africa, underscored by accelerated digitalisation in response to COVID-19 and technological change, have profound implications for life on the continent. These scenarios for Africa’s digital future aim to

Read More »
31 August, 2019
Datahack4FI Season 2
Digital Transformation & Data

DataHack for financial inclusion Innovation Competition: Season 2

The DataHack4FI competition seeks to advance financial inclusion through data innovation. It does this by encouraging and upskilling young finance, tech and data enthusiasts in Africa to use data and data analytics to collectively solve business challenges and to make appropriate financial services more affordable and readily accessible to unserved

Read More »
19 July, 2019
Consumer Outcomes

Behavioural science for financial services

We’ve been exploring how financial service providers can translate new insights from behavioural science into the design and delivery of financial services These systematic reviews conducted in 2017 and 2018 sought to identify behavioural interventions that have been proven to influence the credit, saving, insurance or payment decisions of customers. We’ve

Read More »
14 June, 2019
Africa’s financial service providers
Consumer Outcomes

The application of behavioural interventions

As we explore how behavioural science can narrow the gap between customer intention and customer action, we have started to look at examples from specific financial services. Two sectors identified as playing a role in improving the lives of the financially excluded are insurance and formal remittances. Behavioural interventions and

Read More »
14 June, 2019
Central bank digital currency (CBDC) and financial inclusion
Digital Transformation & Data

Central bank digital currency (CBDC) and financial inclusion

What can CBDC do for emerging markets: a case for mobile money Central banks have started to actively explore central bank digital currency (CBDC) – a new digital form of legal tender that mimics cash. Our initial note “The benefits and potential risks of digital fiat currencies” highlighted that CBDC

Read More »
10 June, 2019
Making technical assistance work
Digital Transformation & Data

Making technical assistance work in Africa: Three keys to success for financial services providers

It’s not easy delivering data-driven financial services to the financially excluded in Africa’s emerging economies. That’s why technical assistance (TA) can be essential to the success of the region’s financial service providers (FSPs). Comprised of various forms of non-financial assistance provided by outside specialists, TA can take the form of

16 October, 2019
Households
Digital Transformation & Data

Reaching for the future, searching for a vision for Africa’s digital economy

Digitalisation is disrupting markets and economic structures globally, and even advanced economies do not have a clear view of the new economy and the rules that will govern it. While it is clear that we’re going through a period of disruption and change, it’s not yet clear which of the disrupters will

7 October, 2019
Digital Transformation & Data

Inside-out: The good and the bad of insight2impact

Does this situation sound familiar? A development program runs its course, generating lots of intriguing insights and impacts – and experiencing its fair share of setbacks. These successes and failures could provide useful guidance to other initiatives. But once the program is over and the funders and implementers have moved

2 October, 2019
E-hailing
Digital Transformation & Data

Exploring Africa’s digital platforms: Insurance in e-hailing

In recent years the platform economy has rapidly transformed various economic sectors such as hospitality, ecommerce and transportation. One of the most important subsectors of the platform economy is e-hailing. E-hailing platforms connect passengers and drivers of cars, taxis or any other form of transportation using virtual devices such as

5 September, 2019
Digital Transformation & Data

Africa’s digital future: Policy scenarios

What could Africa look like in 2048?  The digital revolution is gaining ground across Africa. Ambitions around an increasingly digital and connected Africa, underscored by accelerated digitalisation in response to COVID-19 and technological change, have profound implications for life on the continent. These scenarios for Africa’s digital future aim to

31 August, 2019
Datahack4FI Season 2
Digital Transformation & Data

DataHack for financial inclusion Innovation Competition: Season 2

The DataHack4FI competition seeks to advance financial inclusion through data innovation. It does this by encouraging and upskilling young finance, tech and data enthusiasts in Africa to use data and data analytics to collectively solve business challenges and to make appropriate financial services more affordable and readily accessible to unserved

19 July, 2019
Consumer Outcomes

Behavioural science for financial services

We’ve been exploring how financial service providers can translate new insights from behavioural science into the design and delivery of financial services These systematic reviews conducted in 2017 and 2018 sought to identify behavioural interventions that have been proven to influence the credit, saving, insurance or payment decisions of customers. We’ve

14 June, 2019
Africa’s financial service providers
Consumer Outcomes

The application of behavioural interventions

As we explore how behavioural science can narrow the gap between customer intention and customer action, we have started to look at examples from specific financial services. Two sectors identified as playing a role in improving the lives of the financially excluded are insurance and formal remittances. Behavioural interventions and

14 June, 2019
Central bank digital currency (CBDC) and financial inclusion
Digital Transformation & Data

Central bank digital currency (CBDC) and financial inclusion

What can CBDC do for emerging markets: a case for mobile money Central banks have started to actively explore central bank digital currency (CBDC) – a new digital form of legal tender that mimics cash. Our initial note “The benefits and potential risks of digital fiat currencies” highlighted that CBDC

10 June, 2019