Our work

Most estimates find that around 80% of working Angolans operate in the informal sector. Lack of adequate housing is a key issue undermining their wellbeing and ability to positively contribute to the economy.
 
In partnership with the state-owned land management company and a leading NGO in urban development, we designed and implemented a study of the financial capabilities of market traders in Sequele. We identified a segment, 28% of the studied population, that demonstrated the capabilities and behaviours to make good use of microfinance to legally acquire land and finance the self-build of a home.
 
We estimated that acquiring a home, connected to power and water, in the vicinity of where they worked, could save traders 13% of their monthly household income otherwise spent on travel costs and another 14% spent on informal water supply. Not only could this service repayments, but allow consumption patterns to emerge that would energise local economies.
 
We designed and recommended a strategy encompassing tailored microfinance products and housebuilding assistance, that was spotlighted at 2022's World Urban Forum.

There is relatively low penetration of microfinance in Angola, despite well-documented demand and shortage of supply (on balance, between 2019 and 2021 Angolan commercial banks lent two kwanzas for every ten they took in deposits).

Meanwhile, it is striking that, in 2020, the mobile money transactions in Mozambique represented over 50% of the value of GDP. Meanwhile, in Angola, it was close to zero. But regulatory reforms have recently created the potential for rapid growth, especially at the intersection of digital finance and lending.
 
As part of an International Finance Corporation team, we contributed to developing the digital transformation roadmap of Angola's leading microfinance lender. We produced a deep analysis of the marketplace and its demand-based, competitive, regulatory, and technological opportunities. This was complemented with a detailed study of the lender's customers, segmented into meaningful personas.
 
We also provided introductory workshops in human-centred design, guiding the lender's executive staff on how to use their customer personas as the building blocks for product and strategy design.

The proportion of bank branches and ATMs per 100,000 adults in Angola is higher than Nigeria or Mozambique. Despite this, the central bank noted a decline in measures of financial inclusion across the country between 2013 and 2019.

This perhaps mirrors the observation that population growth has greatly outpaced that of bank branches and ATMs. Meanwhile, the spread of digital financial services has been modest, a trend bucked only by strong growth in the use of point of sale devices (card readers, mainly).
 
In 2022 Angola's central bank (BNA) undertook the first dedicated nationwide survey of financial inclusion, the FinScope Consumer Survey. We have undertaken the national coordination of the survey on behalf of FinMark Trust, working closely with the Angolan central bank and local partners. This has encompassed the mobilisation of resources and institutional partnerships, as well as supervision of planning, implementation, quality control, and analysis.
 
It was a pleasure to present the results on behalf of the BNA. The presentation can be viewed here.