4.1. Difficult choices ahead Commercial sustainability or last-mile inclusion? Standard solutions or local adaptation? Measuring activity or measuring outcomes? Innovation or trust? Immediate needs or long-term resilience? In a sentence? Financial inclusion is entering a period in which success may depend less on solving individual problems than on navigating multiple, interconnected priorities simultaneously. The challenge is no longer simply deciding what to do next, but understanding how each decision shapes the other . Menu Menu Close Close 1. Introduction, context & respondents 1.1. Welcome to the Financial Inclusion Compass 2026 1.1. Welcome to the Financial Inclusion Compass 2026 2. Results 2.1. A sector adapting on several fronts at once: what respondents told us 2.1. A sector adapting on several fronts at once: what respondents told us Five themes Introducing five broad themes from the responses Introducing five broad themes from the responses Analysis & implication 4.1. Difficult choices ahead 4.1. Difficult choices ahead 1.2. A listening exercise, not a census 1.2. A listening exercise, not a census 1.3. A diverse field of voices 1.3. A diverse field of voices 2.2. Shared concerns, different exposure 2.2. Shared concerns, different exposure 2.3. Where you sit shapes what you see 2.3. Where you sit shapes what you see From access to resilience From Access to Resilience Adapting to the new normal Adapting to the new normal Promise without guardrails Promise without guardrails Who pays for inclusion? Who pays for inclusion? Navigating a fragmented and complex landscape Navigating a fragmented and complex landscape 4.2. What does it all mean? 4.2. What does it all mean? 4.3. Five questions that will shape the next phase of financial inclusion 4.3. Five questions that will shape the next phase of financial inclusion 4.4. About the Compass 4.4. About the Compass Standard solutions or local adaptation? Climate change, conflict, migration, fragile livelihoods and demographic change affect communities in very different ways. Respondents consistently emphasise the importance of context-specific responses, partnerships and locally appropriate solutions rather than universal models. As financial inclusion becomes more complex, adaptation may become as important as replication. Go back Go back In many African contexts, last-mile communities continue to face barriers including poor infrastructure, weak financial systems, limited digital access, and low trust in formal financial products. There is a growing need for locally driven, climate-resilient financial models. CEO of African MFI Standard solutions or local adaptation? Climate change, conflict, migration, fragile livelihoods and demographic change affect communities in very different ways. Respondents consistently emphasise the importance of context-specific responses, partnerships and locally appropriate solutions rather than universal models. As financial inclusion becomes more complex, adaptation may become as important as replication. Go back Go back Innovation or trust? AI and digital technologies offer significant opportunities to improve efficiency, expand outreach and strengthen decision-making. At the same time, respondents repeatedly identify governance, consumer protection, transparency and institutional readiness as essential preconditions for responsible innovation. Technological progress alone is unlikely to deliver better outcomes if public trust fails to keep pace. Go back Go back We have not yet resolved the ethical dilemmas of using AI. Darwin Chamorro, President, Cooperativa de Producción Agropecuaria Salinerito, Ecuador Standard solutions or local adaptation? Climate change, conflict, migration, fragile livelihoods and demographic change affect communities in very different ways. Respondents consistently emphasise the importance of context-specific responses, partnerships and locally appropriate solutions rather than universal models. As financial inclusion becomes more complex, adaptation may become as important as replication. Go back Go back Innovation or trust? AI and digital technologies offer significant opportunities to improve efficiency, expand outreach and strengthen decision-making. At the same time, respondents repeatedly identify governance, consumer protection, transparency and institutional readiness as essential preconditions for responsible innovation. Technological progress alone is unlikely to deliver better outcomes if public trust fails to keep pace. Go back Go back Commercial sustainability or last-mile inclusion? As funding becomes more constrained and expectations of financial sustainability increase, institutions face growing pressure to demonstrate commercial viability. Yet many of the populations most in need of inclusive financial services remain the most expensive and difficult to reach. The challenge is not simply finding new capital, but ensuring that changing financial incentives do not narrow the sector’s ambition. Go back Go back Without donor funding, serving the ultra-poor or other hardest-to-reach groups isn’t going to happen. Commercial pressures move the market away from serving vulnerable people responsibly — if at all. Head of Infrastructure organisation based in US Standard solutions or local adaptation? Climate change, conflict, migration, fragile livelihoods and demographic change affect communities in very different ways. Respondents consistently emphasise the importance of context-specific responses, partnerships and locally appropriate solutions rather than universal models. As financial inclusion becomes more complex, adaptation may become as important as replication. Go back Go back Innovation or trust? AI and digital technologies offer significant opportunities to improve efficiency, expand outreach and strengthen decision-making. At the same time, respondents repeatedly identify governance, consumer protection, transparency and institutional readiness as essential preconditions for responsible innovation. Technological progress alone is unlikely to deliver better outcomes if public trust fails to keep pace. Go back Go back de Producción Agropecuaria Salinerito, Ecuador Immediate needs or long-term resilience? Many households continue to require support in managing short-term financial shocks and liquidity constraints. At the same time, respondents increasingly argue that financial inclusion should strengthen people’s capacity to withstand future shocks rather than simply respond to current ones. The survey suggests these objectives are complementary, but balancing short-term needs with long-term resilience will remain an ongoing challenge. Go back Go back Health shocks remain a major driver of financial vulnerability, yet microinsurance, health savings and embedded-finance solutions remain underdeveloped. Annie Wang, Head of Global Health, Opportunity International Standard solutions or local adaptation? Climate change, conflict, migration, fragile livelihoods and demographic change affect communities in very different ways. Respondents consistently emphasise the importance of context-specific responses, partnerships and locally appropriate solutions rather than universal models. As financial inclusion becomes more complex, adaptation may become as important as replication. Go back Go back Innovation or trust? AI and digital technologies offer significant opportunities to improve efficiency, expand outreach and strengthen decision-making. At the same time, respondents repeatedly identify governance, consumer protection, transparency and institutional readiness as essential preconditions for responsible innovation. Technological progress alone is unlikely to deliver better outcomes if public trust fails to keep pace. Go back Go back Measuring activity or measuring outcomes? As expectations evolve, respondents increasingly question whether traditional measures of outreach and access remain sufficient indicators of success. If resilience, adaptation and financial health become more important objectives, institutions may also need to reconsider how impact is defined and measured. What counts as success may be changing alongside the sector itself. Go back Go back The priority needs to shift from access to outcomes — particularly resilience and sustainable pathways out of poverty. Without that shift, gains in access risk being superficial and not translating into lasting impact. Funder working in Sub-Saharan Africa