Under the patronage of H.E. Prime Minister Mr. Mohammed Shia' Al-Sudani, Iraq launched its National Financial Inclusion Strategy for the period 2025–2029 during an official conference held in Baghdad. The event was organized by the Central Bank of Iraq, in collaboration with the Arab Monetary Fund, and in partnership with the German Agency for International Cooperation (GIZ), the World Bank, and the Alliance for Financial Inclusion (AFI).
The strategy represents a major step forward in broadening access to financial services across the country, particularly digital solutions. It places a strong focus on reaching underserved segments of the population, including women, youth, and small and medium-sized enterprises. Key objectives include raising the percentage of adults with bank or digital accounts to 50% by 2030 (up from 11% currently), reducing the gender gap in access to financial services to 3.5 percentage points, and increasing the use of digital payments to 85%.
The Arab Monetary Fund played a key role in supporting the strategy’s development by providing technical expertise and advancing regional coordination through the Financial Inclusion for the Arab Region Initiative (FIARI), which it leads in collaboration with international partners.
The strategy is built on a comprehensive implementation framework that includes robust governance, continuous monitoring, close cooperation between public and private sector stakeholders, enhancements to financial infrastructure, encouragement of digital innovation, and efforts to improve financial literacy nationwide.