STEP 2A
Once one or more National Champions has been identified and committed to launching the Code in their country, they work together on establishing the key components of the national program. These include a National Coalition to govern the program, a Coordinator to run it, and an Aggregator to track and report progress in the country. Foundational tasks involve agreeing on the Code’s national framework and action plan and declaring a public declaration of intent to launch the Code.
Three national roles need to be assigned:
National Coalition: To ensure the Code has strong cross-industry support and buy-in, a broader coalition of 8–12 stakeholders can help design, endorse, and support the rollout of the Code in the country. Coalition members can include regulators, FSPs, industry associations, and other ecosystem partners. They are responsible for making a public declaration to launch the Code in the country. The Coalition should meet briefly but regularly to endorse the initiative, appoint the National Coordinator and Aggregator, agree on Code parameters, monitor progress, and address obstacles. A coalition may be established for this purpose or an existing body can take on the Code as part of its mandate. Each Coalition member should be a champion for the Code and a signatory, encourage others to participate in the Code, and ensure incentives and resources are in place to advance the Code.
National Coordinator(s): One or more entities are designated by the National Coalition to coordinate the rollout of the Code, propose design features, convene the National Coalition, keep track of the Code commitments, maintain public information about the Code, and ensure progress is monitored and reported nationally and globally. This role may be formalized through terms of reference agreed by the National Coalition. The Coordinator is also responsible for interfacing with the Global Coordinator, including for onboarding and reporting. The National Coordinator must have both the commitment, mandate, and resources to take on this role.
National Aggregator(s): The National Coalition appoints one or more trusted local institutions, such as industry associations or government bodies, to collect and analyze core indicators. National Aggregators are selected from institutions that have secure systems and protocols in place to manage privacy and disclosure issues related to data. Different Aggregators may be required for different types of financial intermediaries (e.g., banks, fintechs, funds) A National Aggregator collects FSP data on the Code’s core indicators. The Coordinator and the Aggregator could be the same institution, provided the Coordinator has the necessary processes in place for data collection. The National Aggregator should be a trusted local institution that has robust systems and protocols to address data privacy and disclosure concerns. It should also be an institution that has a mandate to expand financial inclusion data collection so that the Code does not present an additional burden and can contribute to mainstreaming WMSME data collection. In many cases, this is a regulatory body, but it may also be an industry association or other appropriate partner. Different Aggregators may be required for different types of financial intermediaries (e.g., banks, fintechs, funds)
