Building Bridges in 2024: A Year of Impact in Financial Inclusion and Sustainable Development

Dear Partners and Friends,

As 2024 draws to a close, we take a moment to reflect on the milestones we have achieved together.

At M-Pensa Impact & Development GmbH, our mission to build bridges, fill gaps, and create safety nets continues to guide our work toward fostering inclusive and sustainable development. Your trust and partnership have been central to this journey, and we are deeply grateful for your support.

Global Impact: Bringing Stories to Life

Throughout 2024, M-Pensa Impact & Development has worked across regions and sectors, partnering with government institutions, development agencies, and private organizations.

Behind every project lies a story of resilience—of farmers securing their livelihoods, women entrepreneurs thriving, and underserved communities gaining access to financial tools that empower and uplift.

We would like to share the following highlights to showcase how our efforts in 2024 contributed to driving sustainable development:

Financial Inclusion and Empowerment

Costa Rica's National Financial Inclusion Strategy: Developed a comprehensive strategy in collaboration with the Superintendencia General de Entidades Financieras (SUGEF) to address financial inclusion gaps and expand access to underserved segments of the population.

Strengthening Financial Literacy in Ecuador: Delivered gender-sensitive financial education and enhanced governance practices through collaboration with the Superintendencia de Economía Popular y Solidaria (SEPS) and the support of the Development Bank of Latin America (CAF).

Redefining Financial Inclusion in Kenya: Partnered with FSD Kenya to advance innovative financial inclusion metrics, emphasizing usage frequency and non-binary indicators.

Climate Resilience and Agriculture

Agricultural Insurance for Smallholder Farmers: Supported VisionFund to develop sustainable risk management solutions for smallholder farmers facing climate challenges in Kenya, Ghana, and Tanzania.

Inclusive Green Finance Roadmap: Delivered recommendations for the Alliance for Financial Inclusion (AFI) to guide member countries in implementing green finance policies and proposing solutions to integrate sustainability into financial systems.

Smallholder Safety Net Upscaling Programme (SSNUP): Conducted a mid-term evaluation for ADA Luxembourg, providing insights to enhance smallholder resilience, strengthen agricultural value chains, and scale up innovative safety net interventions.

Innovation and Technology for Development

Regulatory Sandbox in Ethiopia: As part of a UNDP project, designing and managing the Regulatory Sandboxes for the Ethiopian Capital Markets Authority (ECMA) and the National Bank of Ethiopia (NBE), enabling fintech innovations to address financial inclusion challenges within a controlled, consumer-safe environment.

Looking Ahead

As we step into 2025, we reaffirm our commitment to fostering innovation, inclusivity, and sustainability. Together, we aim to continue creating meaningful, lasting change for the people and communities we serve.

We invite you to join us on this journey, exploring new opportunities to collaborate and innovate.

Wishing you a joyful holiday season and a prosperous New Year filled with success, opportunities, and renewed hope for peace and justice in our world.

Warm regards,

Team M-Pensa Impact & Development GmbH