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International development

Facilitating the use of electronic means of payment in Ivory Coast and Niger

March 10, 2021

To encourage the use of electronic means of payment and increase the financial inclusion of populations, the Central Bank of West African States and the African Development Bank just entrusted the consortium comprised of Développement international Desjardins (DID) and CTISN with the mandate to set up 2 computer processing centres in Ivory Coast and Niger.

Inspired by the model set up in Senegal by DID, these centres will make it possible to pool and optimize the processing of operations carried out by microfinance institutions (or decentralized financial systems, SFDs) in the two target countries. They will provide services and advice at affordable costs, enabling the SFDs to automate their operations and provide their clients with new electronic and mobile services, in collaboration with the West African Economic and Monetary Union's Interbank Monetics Group.

These innovations will enhance the transparency, reliability and security of operations carried out by SFDs and thus increase the confidence of their members and customers.

This mandate will be carried out in collaboration with the computer processing centre of Senegal, which was set up by DID in 2014 and is currently operating as a local and independent company, and with DID's regional office in Dakar.

The consortium will first analyze the management information systems used in the SFDs of Ivory Coast and Niger before setting up the 2 computer processing centres and initially computerizing 20 targeted SFDs (13 in Niger and 7 in Ivory Coast). At the end of the 3-year project, both centres should be economically viable and can then integrate additional SFDs.