Presented by:
USAID and DAI
Fernando Maldonado, Team Lead, Digital Finance, USAID
Taha Gaya, Digital Finance Advisor, USAID
Susannah Horton, Digital Specialist, DAI
Overview:
A key initiative within USAID’s recently launched Digital Strategy is to strengthen the application of safe, regulated, and reliable digital payments. Research shows that digital payments make financial transactions more affordable, efficient, transparent, and secure. Particularly, in light of COVID-19, urgency is increasing the need to accelerate the growth of inclusive digital payment systems globally.
USAID has been invited to host a learning discussion to understand who is implementing digital payments; why they are applying digital payments; where and when digital payments occur; and how digital payments are transacted. This session will be led by Taha Gaya and Fernando Maldonado from USAID’s Center for Digital Development with support from Susannah Horton from DAI, which is supporting the rollout of the Digital Strategy.
During the session, USAID will present the Digital Strategy and its relation to digital payments, then facilitate a focus group discussion amongst Treasurers Roundtable participants to gather information on how digital payments are being used across global development organizations and collect feedback on how USAID can best support transitions to digital payments. Key goals for the session include:
Understand USAID’s motivation to support digital payments in the context of the Digital Strategy
Discuss global development organizations’ challenges, practices, and solutions to transition to digital payments
Identify how USAID can best support global development organizations to increase adoption of digital payments