UNCDF and Tootle partner to bring door to door financial services
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On 15th February 2018, The United Nations Capital Development Fund’s (UNCDF) MM4P programme and Tootle launched a new project to provide doorstep delivery of financial services
Kathmandu Valley is the fastest growing urban agglomeration in South Asia1. The rapid urbanization has resulted in an influx of migrants as well as traffic congestion and air pollution. Tootle launched a motorbike ride-share service in 2017, which allows those seeking rides to connect with motorbike owners interested in taking a passenger and earning additional income.
UNCDF is providing a grant and technical support for Tootle to use its ride-share business to offer doorstep delivery of both financial and non-financial services. Riders can pay in cash or with their Tootle balance. The Tootle app allows riders to top up their Tootle Balance using e-Sewa, a digital wallet. The project is to help Tootle drivers expand their business while expanding the availability and use of digital finance in partnership with digital financial service providers. Soon, residents will be able to get food, packages delivered and cash in and cash out of their digital accounts in the first of its kind pilot.
“We hope our support to Tootle will be a triple success – customers can get financial services at their doorstep, drivers can make more money, and Tootle can build its business” noted Abhay Pareek, UNCDF Digital Finance Expert based in Kathmandu.
The project is part of UNCDF’s goal to improve people’s lives by making financial services more accessible and relevant for Nepal. Since 2013, UNCDF has worked with a range of companies, the government and international organizations to build digital finance in Nepal. UNCDF uses grants and technical expertise to help companies test and scale up financial inclusion initiatives that use partnerships to reach low-income people.
1. UNDESA (United Nations, Department of Economic and Social Affairs). World Urbanization Prospects. The 2014 Revision; UNDESA: New York, NY, USA, 2015.↩
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About MM4P
The MM4P programme launched in 2012 because UN Capital Development Fund (UNCDF) saw that the gains in digital financial services were not reaching the least developed countries. UNCDF was designed to provide the correct mix of financial, technical and policy support to build robust digital finance ecosystems that reaches low-income people. In doing so, it has helped accelerate growth in several countries. In Nepal, it has supported projects that have reached hundreds of thousands of Nepalis access digital financial services.
For more information, visit mm4p.uncdf.org or follow @UNCDFMM4P and UNCDF MM4P.
About TOOTLE
Tootle is a software application that serves as a means to find motorcycle based services provided by third parties (Tootle partners). Tootle is a ride sharing service which aims to pioneer in the sharing economy which is an emerging concept in Nepal.