The Central Bank of Nigeria has set an ambitious target to bring an additional 15 million Nigerians, market women, farmers, and young people, into the formal financial system by 2028, as part of a sweeping new policy framework unveiled in Abuja.
CBN Governor Olayemi Cardoso announced the target at the launch of the Payments System Vision 2028 (PSV 2028), saying the apex bank wants to push financial inclusion to 95 per cent, up from current levels where a large share of Nigerian adults remain outside or at the edges of the formal economy.
“In 2023, a large number of Nigerian adults had access to financial services. Under Vision 2028, I would like to see this reach 95 per cent inclusion, meaning 15 million more market women, farmers, and young people will gain access to financial services,” Cardoso said.
The governor tied inclusion directly to poverty reduction, arguing that access to payment systems determines whether citizens can fully participate in the economy.
He said cash must no longer define that participation. “It is not enough for individuals to think, ‘I am fine, I can just use cash’. It is more than that,” he added, calling for a significant reduction in cash circulating outside the banking system.
Jimoh Itopa Musa, CBN director of Payments System Policynoted that Nigeria now has about two million banking agents nationwide, small business owners who have helped extend financial access into underserved communities.
He said PSV 2028 builds on this foundation, targeting the three barriers that have historically constrained inclusion: access, complexity, and trust.
CBN Deputy Governor Muhammad Sani Abdullahi added that the framework’s five pillars, infrastructure, inclusion, innovation, cross-border payments, and system integrity, reinforce each other.
“Infrastructure drives inclusion, inclusion drives adoption, and adoption fuels innovation and growth,” he said.
