Bilal to open financial institutions` meeting

Vice-President Dr Mohamed Gharib Bilal is tomorrow expected to address the 17th Conference of Financial Institutions (COFI) meeting to be held at the Arusha International Conference Centre (AICC).

The two-day event has been organized by Bank of Tanzania (BoT). COFI is a biennial forum created in 1980 by the central bank.

 “It brings together heads of financial institutions and other stakeholders to exchange views and experiences on matters related to the financial system and the country’s economy.”

This year’s conference theme is ‘Financing Agriculture and Agribusiness in Tanzania: Challenges and Opportunities.’

It is expected to reflect the need to increase financial resources to agriculture, the major activity of the majority of Tanzanians.

Currently, there is remarkable financial innovations , accompanied by elimination of geographical barriers to some financial services, particularly money transfer services.

 Mobile money and several other innovations in the country have become part of the changing financial sector landscape, playing a ‘transformative role’ in extending affordable financial services, particularly to the rural populations.

Policy makers and practitioners in the financial sector are eager to understand the forces behind these developments and their implications to the provision of financial services.