IFC and Ant Financial launch programme for talent development
International Financial Corporation (IFC), a member of the World Bank Group, and Ant Financial, operator of Alipay, have announced the 10×1000 Tech for Inclusion programme at the 2018 Annual Meetings of the International Monetary Fund and the World Bank.
The planned programme aims to embrace interactivity and the exchange of ideas to “provide training to 10,000 tech experts” in emerging markets over the next ten years.
The first target region for the programme will be Indonesia.
Alibaba Group founder and executive chairman Jack Ma says the programme aims to build an interactive and open platform to increase support for tech leaders and skilled individuals, so they can work to alleviate poverty and make basic financial services more accessible in Indonesia.
“I believe that investing in people is investing for the future. My hope is that emerging markets will benefit from the individuals that are nurtured under this new programme,” says Ma, who is an adviser to the Indonesian government steering committee for e-commerce.
The programme will seek support from local public and private sector partners in emerging markets.
A series of “techfin” workshops will be held across China and various countries to inspire tech leaders and local talent to become “drivers for change” in the digital era, promoting technology inclusion and global sustainability.
IFC and Ant Financial have partnered on initiatives to extend micro-credits to small- and women-owned businesses in China and over the past year have driven collaboration on inclusive digital finance, green digital finance and business-environment enhancement.
In 2016, Ant Financial signed onto the World Bank Group Universal Financial Access 2020 goal and committed to increasing access to financial services for 100 million underserved individuals.
Philippe Le Houérou, IFC CEO, says: “Digital finance is transforming the financial landscape, creating new markets, empowering consumers and putting banking in the hands of unreached millions worldwide for the first time.”
This kind of deals are no novelty for the institutions involved.
