Treasury to Host Mexican Finance Minister for Workshop on Financial Inclusion in Latin America

February 13, 2008 -- U.S. Treasurer Anna Escobedo Cabral will host Mexican Finance Secretary Agustín Carstens and other Latin American leaders this week for a two-day Workshop on Financial Inclusion, building on Secretary Henry Paulson's initiative to improve Latin Americans' access to basic financial services announced in a June 2007 speech.

The vast majority of the Latin American population functions exclusively in a cash and barter economy. More than 70 percent of the residents of most Latin American economies do not use basic financial services such as deposit and transaction accounts, according to World Bank estimates. These households either lack access to these services or fail to make use of services that are available.

Recent cross-country analysis by the World Bank indicates that financial exclusion can dampen economic growth and contribute to financial instability.

The workshop will focus on a variety of issues on living without tools to build financial security, including improving small business lending in Latin America, regulatory landscape and the impact of remittances on the region.

Treasurer Cabral has carried out Secretary Paulson's initiative to improve access to financial services in this region by meeting with policy makers and private sector leaders in their home countries and by hosting conferences here in the United States.

Source: Treas. Dept

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