Ramachandran shares stories of Candy from Venezuela, Yilmary from Brazil, Rubén from Colombia and Sonia from Brazil to highlight the struggles refugees all over South America face accessing finance and credit systems without formal or adequate ID.
“The UN’s Sustainable Development Goals place 'No Poverty' first on their list, while SDG 8 calls for 'Decent Work and Economic Growth,' and SDG 10 focuses on 'Reduced Inequalities.' Each of these goals is impacted by access to credit and other essential financial services – and this access won’t be possible unless stakeholders address the obstacle of valid IDs.”
Ramachandran notes there are distinct possibilities with UN Refugee Agency, UNHCR’s inclusive market approach and new solutions from fintech startups around the globe.
The importance of this issue is becoming clearer to development organisations across the spectrum looking to help people access credit