This rate is up by 4.5 percentage points compared to 2018, which showed a financial inclusion rate of 55.5%, indicates the new report.

The document indicates that this situation is explained by a strengthening of the contribution of electronic money to the use of financial services in the region.

The rate of use of electronic money services thus climbed by 5.4 percentage points to stand at 39.6% in 2019.

Regarding the classification of countries in terms of financial inclusion progress, Côte d'Ivoire has the highest rate with 77.9%, followed by Benin with 77.8% champion in 2018 , then Togo with 72.3%, Burkina Faso 70.9% and Senegal 70.0%.

Niger, meanwhile, has a financial inclusion rate of 17.5%, one of the lowest in the sub-region despite an increase compared to 2018.

In terms of progress, Guinea-Bissau (+19.0 percentage points) leads the way, followed by Côte d'Ivoire (+10.8 percentage points), Mali (+4.5 percentage points) and Benin (+3.4 percentage points).