1. Annual Policy Conference Greater Inclusion: Possibilities & Prospects
Introduction to
Annual Policy Conference
2007 on
Greater Inclusion: Possibilities & Prospects
17-18th January 2007
Mathew Titus

2. Current debate on Financial Inclusion
Inclusion of poor critical in the mainstream programs for economic advancement from social, economic & political perspective
In recent times, efforts on policies for holistic inclusion –
Committee on financial inclusion: Dr. C. Rangarajan
Working group in Planning Commission
Task force under National Commission of Enterprises
Reserve bank of India committee on financial inclusion
The work requires – revisiting and redefining present day approaches, institutional frameworks from the perspective of demand and supply stream in the economy
Challenge for Institutions – To remain efficient, competitive & sustainable while serving the poor

3. Integration with Livelihoods
Livelihoods issues for the poor are complex
Need for creating new opportunities for employment and entreneurship
Creating markets and providing linkages
Supporting and upgrading skills to develop markets without destroying traditional occupations
Livelihood – finance integration

4. Social Security Degree of vulnerability in poor – very high
No access to social security products makes them even more vulnerable
Social security is important for them as an alternative to provide a safety net to their lives and endevaours
The availability and suitable of these product still in the experimental stage
Pension remains a distance dream
Need for institutional infrastructure and facilitative environment for reaching out with social security measures to the poor

5. Collective efforts needed for inclusive financial markets
Provision of credit, savings and insurance especially health and asset insurance need to be made accessible
For vibrancy of the market economy – livelihood promotion and market linkages are crucial
This requires collective effort from all stakeholders in the form of effective collaboration and role distribution

6. Institutional Preparedness
Are our institutional structures, systems and processes equipped for financial inclusion of marginalized population?
Indian Financial Infrastructure
Public sector banks, RRBs, three tier cooperative structure [down sized to meet the needs of small farmers through PACS]
Under liberalization – entry of many private sector banks
However, the incremental outreach – far from satisfactory

7. Therefore, the Focus of Conference
Dynamics of INCLUSION
Inclusive LIVELIHOODS
Social SECURITY
Challenges for Nation in Greater Financial Inclusion
Development and COOPERATION
Institutional PREPAREDNESS
CONVERGENCE

8. Thank you