In less than a decade, Namibia has made significant strides in financial inclusion, the statistics improving from 51% to 78%. 

This progress, driven by the Namibia Financial Sector Strategy, launched in 2012, reflects a strong commitment to expanding access to financial services across the country.

Finance Minister Iipumbu Shimii revealed this at the launch of MTC's newest digital money software, known as 'Maris'.

At the moment, about 21% of the population does not have access to physical banks, and MTC's new service will empower users to conduct various financial transactions such as money transfers, digital payments, and ATM withdrawals.

Many of the financial products introduced in the past have been bank-based, requiring physical access to ATMs, a service often unavailable in outlying regions.

"Remember, the target was only 74%. We actually overshot that target by a small margin of 4 percentage points. But the tail costs, as I have said before, have always been in the background. So, because you still have about 21% of the population that is not financially included. And that's the most difficult segment of the population, because many of them are in the outlying areas. They don't have access to banking institutions. The banking outlets are not there, because many of the products that have been launched before are bank-based. If I send you a wallet, you'd have to go to an ATM to withdraw that wallet. So, you need an ATM. That's one thing. The other constraint was that if I send you a new wallet, you will not be able to transfer it. Banks talk about a very difficult word, interoperability. So, if I send you a new wallet, if I bank with one bank, I will not be able to withdraw that wallet at the other ATM. Because of these things, we're not talking to each other."

Applauding MTC's initiative, the minister said that addressing these barriers is seen as the crucial next step in Namibia's drive towards full financial inclusion.

Chief HR and Corporate Communications at MTC, Tim Ekandjo, stated the cutting-edge mobile financial service solution is aimed at transforming Namibia's financial landscape.

According to Ekandjo, the platform is the first of its kind to offer e-money services in the Namibian market, with the goal of providing millions of customers with access to financial services through their mobile devices.

The platform offers a wide range of services, including sending and receiving money, cash-in and cash-out services, bill payments, and salary disbursements.

"So, it's Maris. MTC Maris is available to the entire Weight One Nation, provided that of course you have an active mobile device. And what we mean by an active mobile device is that when I call you, the device should be able to ring, not a device that you haven't used in four or five months, which is obviously very, very unlikely. You can navigate as an MTC Maris customer on the platform on a 24-hour basis. So, no bank account is required. And I think this is the distinctive advantage that you do not have to have a bank account. You do not require a bank account to be on MTC Maris. It works on any type of device."

Ekandjo said that MTC Maris aims to bridge the gap for those without access to traditional banking, making financial services more accessible to all.