Digital financial inclusion is an important enabler of inclusive and sustainable development, providing individuals, households, micro, small and medium-sized enterprises (MSMEs), and underserved communities with greater access to affordable, accessible and appropriate financial services in digital format. Advances in digital technologies offer new opportunities to expand financial services, particularly in rural and remote areas. However, persistent gaps in digital connectivity, financial and digital literacy, institutional capacity and access to appropriate financial services continue to constrain the benefits of digital financial transformation.
Community-based financial institutions, including credit cooperatives, can play an important role in addressing these challenges by combining local knowledge, community trust and financial services with digital technologies. Their experiences offer valuable lessons for developing inclusive and sustainable digital financial models that respond to the needs of underserved populations.
Against this backdrop, the United Nations Economic and Social Commission for Asia and the Pacific (ESCAP) and the Korea Federation of Community Credit Cooperatives (KFCC) have established a partnership to promote digital financial inclusion and transformation in Asia and the Pacific, through the KFCC-funded project entitled “Implementing the Action Plan 2022–2026 of the Asia-Pacific Information Superhighway with a focus on digital financial inclusion and transformation.”
The partnership brings together ESCAP's regional cooperation platform, policy expertise and capacity-building experience with KFCC's practical knowledge and institutional experience in community-based financial services. Through this complementary cooperation, the two organizations seek to facilitate knowledge-sharing, strengthen institutional capacities and identify practical approaches to extending inclusive digital financial services to underserved communities across the region.
Building on the progress achieved under this partnership, ESCAP and KFCC will jointly organize the UNESCAP-KFCC International Workshop on Community-Level Digital Financial Inclusion from 21 to 23 December 2026 at the MG Training Institute in Jeju, Republic of Korea. The workshop will provide an opportunity to review the progress and achievements of the KFCC-funded project, identify priorities for its implementation during 2027–2028 and explore opportunities to translate international good practices into practical country-level initiatives.
In particular, the workshop will facilitate exchanges on community-based digital financial inclusion models and relevant international experiences, including those of KFCC, the International Fund for Agricultural Development (IFAD), Germany's cooperative and savings banking institutions, and Canada's Desjardins Group. These exchanges will help identify lessons, institutional arrangements and potential approaches that could be adapted to the needs and circumstances of developing countries in Asia and the Pacific.