Building a financial sector inclusive of people with a disability

Financial services play an important role in social development, providing a route to economic independence, as well as access to other products and services. Access to financial services is an enabler or target for eight of the seventeen Sustainable Development Goals (SDGs).

Globally, it is estimated that 15% of the population experiences some form of disability. By implementing disability inclusion, FSPs can support national financial inclusion and fulfill the rights of people with disabilities, as well as advancing their business goals. 

Financial inclusion for people with disabilities is a priority for the Royal Government of Cambodia and the Ministry of Social Affairs, Veteran Affairs and Youth Rehabilitation. With 10% of the population living with a disability, this is also a vital market to include in financial services and the economy - and should be your priority too.

You and your organisation can take actions - small and large - to make your services more inclusive for the whole community and the resources on this page will help you get started.

Quick links:

Celebrating Financial Inclusion Week 2023

Financial Inclusion Week (FIW) is an annual virtual forum convened by the Center for Financial Inclusion (CFI) for the financial inclusion community to exchange ideas, research, and perspectives from around the world. This year’s forum poses the question: “Is Inclusive Finance Ready for the Accelerating Pace of Change?”.

In the session “Accelerating financial inclusion of people with disabilities: the transformative power of digitalization”, a panel of experts share their experiences in advancing the financial and economic empowerment of people with disabilities. The session includes a demonstration of innovative software plug-in Louie Voice, currently being implemented by a bank in India to make its services accessible through voice commands in 8 different languages, and learnings from the disability inclusion journey undertaken by Chamroeun Microfinance Plc in partnership with Good Return in Cambodia.

View the session and register free of charge for FIW 2023 using this link. You can access the session any time during Financial Inclusion Week.

Get inspired

These stories will show you it is both possible and rewarding to make your financial services accessible to people with a disability.

Youen Keo is a farmer who recently experienced vision loss. She wanted to continue with her business, but struggled to access finance as many banks and microfinance institutions are not accessible, or discriminate against people with disabilities. Hear about her journey to overcome these obstacles.

Find out how the Royal Government of Cambodia and other organisations can help banks and MFIs become inclusive of persons with disabilities.

Ven Rattana, who had polio as a child, wanted to build his business manufacturing and delivering dishwashing up liquid. With training and access to finance he was able to plan his business growth and purchase a tuk tuk for deliveries.

Learn about our model of inclusive financial services for persons with disabilities, covering:

● Inclusive design

● Building financial literacy

● Tailored products and services

● Accessible branches, and

● Embedding disability inclusion

Free training and resources

Use the guidelines, standards and other information here to help you to plan and implement strategies for disability inclusion.  We have collated resources specifically for financial services providers as well as general guidelines for disability inclusion. 

Disability Awareness e-course (Khmer language): This self-paced e-learning module is designed for staff of financial services providers in Cambodia. It provides an introduction to understanding the importance of making their services inclusive of people with disabilities.  The course takes about 45 minutes to complete and is available free of charge on Good Return’s RIF Academy e-learning platform. To access the course, sign up to the RIF Academy and will you be sent a link to the course.

Resources in English

Resources in Khmer

Research

Financial needs of People with Disabilities in Cambodia
To inform our plans to provide inclusive financial education and access to finance for people with disabilities in Cambodia, Good Return and Chamroeun carried out a needs assessment survey with 514 people with disabilities in five provinces in Cambodia. The aim of the research was to understand the financial situation and capabilities of people with disabilities and their experience of and needs for financial products and services. You can find the report on our findings here: https://www.findevgateway.org/paper/2020/12/needs-assessment-people-disabilities-access-financial-education-and-finance-cambodia

Other research studies and reports:

Events

A recent workshop on disability inclusion for FSPs in Cambodia

On 31st March 2023, Good Return and Chamroeun Microfinance Plc in collaboration with the Disability Action Council of Cambodia hosted a Dissemination Workshop on Disability Inclusion for Financial Service Providers at Hotel Cambodiana, Phnom Penh, presided by H.E. Em Chan Makara, .Secretary of State of Ministry of Social Affairs Veterans and Youth Rehabilitation (MoSVY) and Secretary-General of Disability Action Council. See coverage of the event on EAC News.

The workshop brought together the financial services and disability communities, with over 75 participants from both sectors, including representatives from Government ministries and institutions, the National Bank of Cambodia, industry associations, banks and MFIs, Organisations of Persons with Disabilities, development partners, and local and international NGOs.The workshop was designed to promote the financial inclusion of persons with disabilities in Cambodia, by raising awareness of the barriers faced by persons with disabilities to access financial services, sharing case studies and best practice, and providing practical guidance and resources to help FSPs make their services accessible to all clients, including persons with disabilities. 

This included the launch of the "Finance for All" disability inclusion manual for financial services providers, included in the Resource section of this web-page in English and Khmer.  In the final session, the participants shared ideas for actions that the different stakeholders can take to overcome barriers to financial inclusion of persons with disabilities. These outputs will be shared with key actors in the disability and financial services sectors as an input to planning future initiatives for financial inclusion of persons with disabilities."

Reflection Workshop on the Progress of the National Disability Strategic Plan 2019-2023 Implementation (Cambodia)
28 - 30 October 2022

Hosted by the Royal Government of Cambodia, Disability Action council (DAC), Cambodia Disabled People’s Organization (CDPO) and UNDP. 

Members of ACLEDA Bank plc and Chamroeun Microfinance plc joined this workshop to represent private sector financial services providers, presenting their achievements and challenges related to the implementation of Cambodia’s National Disability Strategic Plan (NDSP) II 2019-2023, and recommendations for the NDSP III (2024-2028). Speaking at the event, The Secretary of State of the Ministry of Social Affairs, Veterans and Youth Rehabilitation and Secretary-General of Disability Action Council (DAC), H. E. Em Chan Makara outlined how laws and regulations passed by the government have increased the opportunities for people with disabilities to participate socially and economically in Cambodian society.  https://eacnews.asia/home/details/17458

Financial Inclusion Week (FIW) 2022 (online)
17-20 October 2022

Powered by the ACCION Center for Financial Inclusion

The theme of FIW 2022 was ”Inclusive Growth in a Digital Era”. You can view recordings of more than 100 sessions from the conference on the FIW site.  

  • Good Return and Chamroeun Microfinance plc presented a case study of financial inclusion of people with disabilities in Cambodia as part of the live session “Gender Equity and Disability (GEDSI) Mainstreaming to Accelerate Inclusivity Toward Digitalization” – search for “disability” in the live sessions search box. 

  • The Financial Sector Transformation Council of South Africa provided a pre-recorded presentation on “Accessibility for Persons with Disabilities - Banking Industry”– search for “disabilities” in the on-demand sessions search box.

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The “Finance for All” webpage is an initiative of Good Return and Chamroeun Microfinance plc as part of a joint project to promote financial inclusion of people with disabilities.