Barbadians are being encouraged to see digital financial services as a pathway to further economic development.
The advice came from Minister of Finance and Economic Affairs, Ryan Straughn, as he addressed the official launch of the remittance service, ZeeMoney in Barbados, at the Hilton Barbados Resort today.
Mr. Straughn told the audience that technology has been revolutionary in bringing convenience and access to opportunities in and outside of Barbados.
“We have a number of people participating in what we may refer to as the ‘informal economy’, and …while we are focused and grateful for the FDI [foreign direct investment] from remittances, the reality is that the platforms now need to be spread rapidly across the Caribbean to be able to bring the informality more into a formal spectrum.
“So in Barbados, we welcome these types of interventions because we believe that whether you are a coconut vendor, someone on Swan Street, whether you are a restaurateur, someone selling food, vending, or any business for that matter, these platforms allow people to interact with you; to do business faster in order to unlock significant growth,” the Minister explained.
Noting that financial literacy was key to help bring about the cultural shift necessary and bring the island more in tune with this digital age, he said Government has prioritised financial literacy and digital literacy public education programmes.
“It is important that people understand how to use the technology, not to fear it, to recognise that we must go with the flow, so to speak, and not be left behind, and therefore have a commitment of lifelong learning [and] retraining because that is what is going to keep small island developing states competitive.
“Financial digital literacy will be the cornerstone of how all of us, particularly those of us of African-decent, are able to mobilise the vast resources, whether coming from remittances, or how we invest on a south-south basis to be able to do more work together…,” Minister Straughn pointed out.
He also commended the creators of ZeeMoney, noting that this type of platform will be “critical in helping to unlock the welfare of families to improve their wellbeing, and to be able to do things much faster [and] easier in order to drive decision-making at the household level and the individual level, such that persons no longer feel as exposed or vulnerable given [that] circumstances change very quickly”.
ZeeMoney is a Ghanaian fintech company, based in Barbados, which provides remittance services to the Caribbean. The launch coincided with the observance of International Day of Family Remittances And Managing Director, Andrew Takyi-Appiah, noted that the company was created with the aim of allowing immigrants to conduct timely financial transactions to their families.