Financial Inclusion in Iraq for the Central Bank

Altai has conducted a large-scale study on financial inclusion in Iraq for the Central bank of Iraq, as part of the project "Financial inclusion for a new economic start and integration in Iraq" funded by GIZ and by the European Commission. The study included a survey among 5,200 respondents in all regions of Iraq, in-depth interviews with 40 financial actors (the Central Bank of Iraq, public and private banks, electronic payment providers, microcredit actors, agents, non-formal financial actors, etc.), and focus group discussions with specific population segments as well as MSMEs. Altai organised several workshops with the sector stakeholders to discuss the findings and formulate actionable recommendations to the Central Bank of Iraq on how to increase financial inclusion in the country.

Findings were used by the Central Bank of Iraq to design their first national financial inclusion strategy.