Cash back?

As part of its strategy to reach out to the rural areas, OIBM has launched a new innovation called a POS- Point of Sale- Device which gives the option of cash back. Now, we have been hearing about this product for months as our local colleagues have been raving about the impact it might have on financial inclusion in the rural areas. But to be honest, we weren’t that fired up about it. We were imagining something similar to walking into a supermarket in the UK and casually adding a £20 request at the cash out.

In reality, seeing the POS in action has completely changed our opinion. We now believe that this is the way forward to reach the rural poor. Take Rhoda for example. Rhoda is typical of an OIBM client. She is currently living on $2 a day, she sells doughnuts and before she opened her first ever savings account last year, she was hiding her money under her bed. Before her POS device was installed in her local farm shop in Likuni (and by farm shop, we mean a room with maize, seeds and iron sheeting), her nearest ATM or bank branch was over 10 kilometres away on a dirt path. A journey that would cost her $1 a day, or half of her daily wage. As well as now being able to withdraw cash for basic necessities, Rhoda doesn’t feel intimidated when entering her local farm shop.

We asked Rhoda why she was saving money. Her answer- “to save for my daughter’s education”. We now believe that innovations like this can help transform the lives of the rural poor and that OIBM is once again taking the road less travelled.