Financial Inclusion - The Outlook, the Concerns and the Road Ahead

Abstract

According to Rangarajan Committee, Financial Inclusion may be defined as the process of ensuring access to financial services and timely and adequate credit where needed by vulnerable groups such as weaker sections and low income groups at an affordable cost. This paper broadly covers 3 dimensions of financial inclusion. Firstly, the outlook of financial inclusion; to find out existing structure, policies and practices after looking from both demand and supply side factors like penetration, availability, cost, usage, timeliness, social aspects etc. Secondly, the concerns regarding current situation of financial inclusion, citing facts from different surveys, researches etc. Finally, the Road Ahead for 100% financial inclusion taking clues from Rangarajan Report, UNDP Report, UNCDF-DESA Report and World Bank Report mentioning roles for regulators, development, banks, government etc. and ending the note with the contextual recommendations for improvements in various context of current situations of financial inclusion. Keywords: Financial Inclusion, Insurance

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