The United Nations Economic and Social Commission for Western Asia (ESCWA) highlighted the significant progress made by Morocco in expanding digital finance and promoting access to financial services.
Alongside Jordan and Egypt, the Kingdom stands out for its innovative regulatory reforms and targeted programs supporting financial inclusion, despite a challenging regional context, ESCWA stated in a report entitled “2025 Annual Review of the Sustainable Development Goals: Financial Inclusion in the Arab Region.”
The report nonetheless warns of the persistence of financial exclusion in the Arab region, noting that nearly 60% of adults remain outside the formal financial system, thereby jeopardizing the achievement of the Sustainable Development Goals (SDGs) by 2030.
Women are among the most marginalized groups, with only 29% having a bank account or an electronic wallet, making the Arab region one of the weakest globally in terms of women’s financial inclusion. The gender gap reaches 13 percentage points, the report adds.
The situation is equally concerning for persons with disabilities, of whom only 21% have access to financial services due to discriminatory practices, inadequate infrastructure, and the absence of inclusive policies, the Commission notes.
Furthermore, the report highlights a worrying divide between rural and urban areas, with rural populations being twice as unlikely to access formal financial services as their urban counterparts. Informal sector workers and refugees also face additional challenges, exposing them to greater economic and social risks.
Regarding digital solutions, the report notes strong growth in mobile payments, with the number of electronic accounts doubling between 2020 and 2023. However, it cautions against the emergence of a “digital divide within the divide” due to limited internet access, low smartphone ownership, and a lack of digital skills, which hinder the most vulnerable populations from accessing these services.
The report also emphasizes that access to credit remains one of the main barriers to financial inclusion, with only one in five adults having obtained a loan from a formal financial institution. This situation, according to the report, hampers innovation and job creation, particularly for micro, small, and medium-sized enterprises.
In light of these findings, ESCWA calls for urgent reforms, including strengthening consumer protection, promoting financial literacy, integrating gender and disability perspectives into financial policies, and modernizing digital infrastructure. The UN Commission also stresses the need to develop interoperable digital identity systems to ensure secure and inclusive access to financial services.
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