World Bank South Africa Economic Update: Focus on Financial Inclusion Professor Wendy Ngoma, Director and Head of Wits Business School, together with the World Bank Office in South Africa, invites you to Development Dialogue on the Launch of the South Africa Economic Update on Financial Inclusion with: Michael Fuchs - Advisor: Finance and Private Sector Development, Africa Region and Sandeep Mahajan - Lead Economist for South Africa, Botswana, Lesotho, Namibia, and Swaziland. Interest in the potential transformative power of financial inclusion has become a subject of growing interest for researchers, policy makers, and other financial sector stakeholders. This topic is particularly important for South Africa for a number of reasons. Firstly, expanding access to financial services, by both individuals and small enterprises, may help reduce the country's persistent income inequality and stimulate growth. Secondly, National Treasury (NT) itself, justifiably concerned, has repeatedly stressed the vital role of the financial sector in the ongoing economic and social transformations. Lastly, South Africa as the continent's only G-20 and BRICS member plays an influential global role. Positive financial inclusion progress in South Africa could potentially have an important demonstration effect. While formal financial institutions offer an array of financial services, this note focuses on the use of formal payments, savings, and credit. Speakers Michael Fuchs - Advisor: Finance and Private Sector Development, Africa Region Michael Fuchs is Advisor in the Finance and Private Sector Department of the Bank's Africa Region. Michael has worked in the Africa Region since 2003 focusing on financial sector development issues across a broad spectrum of countries and leading financial sector assessments in Mozambique, Kenya, Uganda, Malawi, Zambia, Tanzania, Rwanda, and Nigeria. Most recently Michael led a financial sector assessment for the group of countries in the East African Community focusing on financial integration. He has also worked extensively in Nigeria, inter alia in supporting the Nigerian Financial System Strategy 2020 and has led several policy reform operations including in Kenya and Nigeria. Among topics of special focus are post-crisis monitoring of African financial systems, the impact of revisions in the international financial architecture on LICs, sub-regional financial integration, and facilitating infrastructure finance. Michael represents the Bank on the Financial Stability Board's sub-regional consultative group co-chaired by the South African Reserve Bank and the Central Bank of Kenya. Before joining the Africa Region Michael worked for 8 years in the Bank's ECA Region, five of which focusing on Russia in the wake of the financial collapse in 1998. Prior to joining the Bank Michael worked for 11 years with the Danish Central Bank predominantly on monetary policy and advising on the management of foreign exchange reserves. He has his PhD and MA from the University of Copenhagen and his BA from the University of York (UK). Sandeep Mahajan - Lead Economist for South Africa, Botswana, Lesotho, Namibia, and Swaziland Sandeep Mahajan has been the World Bank's Lead Economist for South Africa, Botswana, Lesotho, Namibia, and Swaziland since October 2008. In that capacity, he heads the Bank's policy dialogue on a broad range of economic management issues with the respective governments. A development practitioner with over 15 years of experience at the World Bank, he has led complex policy-oriented loans to developing countries and provided extensive advice to governments on issues related to pro-poor growth, macro stability, trade policy, and labour markets. His research interests and publications cover the fields of macroeconomics, economic growth, volatility and inequality, and financial sector development. Born in New Delhi, India, Mr. Mahajan received his B. Com (Hons) from Delhi University and his PhD. in economics from Georgetown University. Date: Wednesday, 29 May 2013 Time:17h30 for 18h00 Venue: Donald Gordon Auditorium, Wits Business School, 2 St. David's Place, Parktown

• published: 03 Jun 2013
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