UNFPA has entered into partnership with Kambawza bank (KBZ), Myanmar's leading private bank, in disbursing over $20 million dollars of UNFPA and donor funds to around 120,000 census personnel across the country, at an official signing ceremony held today (14 March 2014) at the Chatrium Hotel in Yangon.
It is estimated that only 5% of the population of Myanmar have access to or regularly use a bank account. By teaming up with a private bank to help with the census payments, the aim of UNFPA is to use this opportunity to help create a positive image of banking and to the development of a banking culture in Myanmar, moving away from the current cash based economy.
Ms. Janet Jackson, UNFPA Myanmar Representative said that this cooperation was a "new and innovative" exercise never tried before in Myanmar. She also stressed that Myanmar's cash based economy currently suffers a severe lack of credit. "It is this credit, even on a small scale that creates opportunities for people to start news businesses, provide employment and provide a better life for many Myanmar families. Apart from this, large amounts of money are safer and better protected when they are managed through banking systems instead of cash based systems."
She emphasized that "In paying census personnel through a bank, we hope to encourage a change in culture and help the people of Myanmar understand the benefits a bank can provide for their finances. We hope that this will help build public trust in banking and give impetus to starting to move away from the cash based economy and its disadvantages."
Over the past week some 7200 District Trainers across Myanmar successfully received payment, and more training sessions and payments are to follow in the coming week. These trainers will go on to deliver training to the enumerators and supervisors from 17 to 22 March at which point, payments will be made to 120,000 individuals in 330 townships nationwide. Enumerators and supervisors are the individuals that will carry out the data collections during the census.
"With the census and disbursement that we are doing, these are the people who have never banked with us before. We hope that through this disbursement they will have trust in the banking system and a good experience with us so they will continue to work with the bank. If we were on our own it would have been very difficult to get to these unbanked areas but with the UNFPA census effort I believe this is a once in a life time opportunity for us," said Ms.Nang Kham Noung, Director All Banking Operations for KBZ Bank at the signing ceremony.
At the official signing Ms. Jackson thanked and extended UNFPA's deepest appreciation to KBZ for their commitment and for going "above and beyond the call of duty in many instances" to ensure that payments were made to the census personnel. The census will take place from 29th March to 10 April 2014.
