Visa announced its intention to open its office in Côte d'Ivoire to help bring the benefits of electronic payments to the economy and a broader range of consumers and merchants across the region. Visa said in a press statement it is currently in the process to finalising procedures leading to the opening of its office in Côte d'Ivoire. Opening an office will facilitate the engagement with key stakeholders in the region; government, financial institutions, consumers, and merchants in the ECOWAS region. "The expansion will help drive the company strategy in Africa, where two billion people live without access to financial services, " the statement said. "The expansion signals continued efforts by Visa to drive its undertaking with the World Bank Group to achieve universal financial access and provide electronic payment accounts to 500 million underserved people by end of 2020." The company will collaborate with the government and the clients to support the electronification of payments plans, engage in financial literacy activities, and provide solutions to increase the mobile-based payments in the region. General Manager of North and Francophone Africa at Visa Tarek El-Housseiny said the company's presence in Côte d'Ivoire reflects the growing importance of the UEMOA region, which represents 40% of the collective GDP of the Economy of West African States. West Africa Manager at Visa Ismahill Diaby said the decision to have a permanent presence in Côte d'Ivoire will enable Visa to better serve its partner banks and focus efforts on projects that would help accelerate financial inclusion in Francophone West Africa. "We have collaborated with 47 governments to provide more than 5,000 products and solutions to help financial inclusion efforts globally," Diaby said.
