Kaduna State boosts financial inclusion

Nigeria — Kaduna State has achieved a significant increase in financial inclusion, raising account ownership by 20% over three years (2021-2024) and bringing over 800,000 adults into the formal banking system. The state's financial inclusion rate now stands at 66%, outpacing Nigeria's national growth. This success is attributed to a hands-on strategy led by Nigeria — Kaduna State's Financial Inclusion and Literacy Committee, which deployed state-led enrollment drives and developed proprietary software linking 7.9 million National identification numbers with Bank Verification Numbers. The initiative was partly spurred by challenges faced during the COVID-19 pandemic, which revealed that over half of residents lacked bank accounts for social support payments. Nigeria — Kaduna State addressed issues like fragmented identity databases, slow manual verification, and lack of access to physical bank branches by digitizing government payments, deploying urban and rural agents, and acting as an intermediary between federal agencies and banks. Despite these gains, challenges remain, including a gender gap in account ownership and low active usage of newly opened accounts. Nigeria — Kaduna State's 2025-2026 strategy roadmap aims to address these by focusing on financial literacy, inclusive access to services, identity integration, improved digital connectivity, and institutionalization of financial inclusion objectives.