Building Inclusive Payment Ecosystems in Tanzania and Ghana

Digital financial services are transforming the world’s financial sectors. At the heart of this financial transformation is the rise of digital payments services through which nearly any individual or business can send or receive money in real time for almost any purpose and from nearly anywhere in the country—an inclusive payment ecosystem.

Across Sub-Saharan Africa, new success stories are playing out, yet little is understood about the approaches many countries in the region have taken to develop inclusive payment ecosystems. This paper begins with case studies on the Tanzanian and Ghanaian experiences, recounting their journeys from the introduction of mobile money to today. The stories are told through the lens of five key components of inclusive payments ecosystems: regulatory approach, executive commitment and investment, competitive landscape, interconnected services, and compelling use cases. 

The paper concludes with a cross-country comparison that seeks to draw insights from country experiences that may facilitate ongoing attempts to build inclusive payment ecosystems in the rest of Sub-Saharan Africa and in developing markets worldwide.