Mastercard Builds on COVID-19 Response with Commitment to Connect 1 Billion People to the Digital Economy by 2025

In this time of crisis, Mastercard has expanded its worldwide commitment to financial inclusion by pledging to bring a total of 1 billion people and 50 million micro and small businesses into the digital economy by 2025. As part of this effort, there will be a direct focus on providing 25 million women entrepreneurs with solutions that can help them grow their businesses.

The impact of COVID-19 has made it even more pressing to support inclusive growth in Asia Pacific, which is home to 60 percent of the world’s population and the fastest-growing economic region. In an update in April, the World Bank said 24 million fewer people will escape poverty across the East Asia Pacific region this year than would have without the pandemic. 

“If we’re going to recover in any sort of long-term, sustainable way, we have to make sure that everyone is included. Getting people access to the digital economy is a critical part of that,” said Ajay Banga, Chief Executive Officer at Mastercard. “This is so much more than philanthropy. This is an opportunity to develop commercially-sustainable and scalable social impact with government and private sector partners – and to do it in a way that helps society-at-large thrive.”

“Even before the pandemic, the Vietnamese government prioritized building a digital economy that is accessible to all. COVID-19 has revealed that the true value of a digital economy is that it allows for market and businesses to quickly respond, withstand shocks, and be agile enough to adapt to adverse situations,“ said Winnie Wong, Country Manager of Mastercard in Vietnam. “Vietnam is the first country in Southeast Asia to successfully restart and embark on the road to recovery. To accelerate the recovery journey, it is necessary for global companies like Mastercard to leverage their knowledge, technology, and expertise by working closely with the public sector to create initiatives that bring all players, including SMEs, a powerful force multiplier which accounts for more than 97.5% of all local businesses, into the digital economy and create sustainable businesses.”

The new commitment – an extension of Mastercard’s pledge in 2015 to bring 500 million excluded people into the financial system – builds on the company’s efforts to address the pandemic-related health and economic challenges facing people all over the world.

Over the past five years, Mastercard achieved its initial goal of including 500 million people in the digital economy through more than 350 innovative programs across 80 countries.

In India and Indonesia, Mastercard is introducing the Micro Credit Platform that opens access to credit for shopkeepers who historically have been locked out of the financial system. To empower small business owners with the skills they need to use credit most productively, Mastercard partners with NGOs to provide financial and digital literacy training. In Indonesia, the program has begun to scale with the goal of reaching 10,000 neighborhood shops by mid-2020.

In Bangladesh and Cambodia, Mastercard partnered with the apparel industry to digitize supply chains by introducing a combination of digital payrolls and an educational tool. The Digital Wages Toolkit has been tested in Bangladesh with more than 10,000 women garment workers and has been adapted and translated for use in Cambodia.

In Indonesia, Mastercard launched its first flagship skilling program – Mastercard Academy 2.0 – that is designed to engage and impart essential digital knowledge to different segments of the population. By 2022, the program will equip 100,000 schoolchildren, young adults, entrepreneurs and mid-career professionals with the digital skills they need to thrive and actively participate in Indonesia’s digital transformation journey.

In Vietnam, Mastercard is working with CARE International to assist banks and fintechs to tailor financial services and products to bring women into the financial system and catalyze business growth among women entrepreneurs. The goal is to reach more than 1 million Vietnamese women.

Reaching the 1 billion goal for financial inclusion will require a broad range of efforts, including ongoing work on government disbursement solutions, wage digitization of private sector workers, partnerships with mobile network operators, solutions for gig workers, scaling efforts with fintechs, digital platforms and digital wallets/apps and solutions addressing needs of the financially vulnerable.

H.N (Vietnam Business Forum)