The challenging geography and poor infrastructure of many Pacific nations mean digital financial services (DFS) are a particularly effective means of enhancing financial inclusion in the region. However, a number of major challenges confront DFS in the Pacific, including the establishment of reliable agent networks and the building of sufficient consumer trust in DFS for it to become a viable payments channel. This report examines the current use of DFS in the Pacific, analyzes the issues that need to be addressed, and provides recommendations for increasing financial inclusion in the region. This publication was produced by the Pacific Private Sector Development Initiative, a regional technical assistance facility cofinanced by the Asian Development Bank (ADB), the Government of Australia and the New Zealand government.

The Bali Fintech Agenda highlights 12 principles for policymakers to consider when formulating their approaches to new financial technology (fintech). The agenda aims to harness the potential of fintech while managing associated risks. This paper looks at how some elements of the Bali Fintech Agenda could be used in Pacific island countries, which face significant financial-structural challenges.

This book explains how rapid digitalization during COVID-19 has accelerated the growth of digital services trade in Asia and the Pacific, and provides analysis on the opportunities, challenges, and associated risks. It explores evolving trends and considers trade agreements, cybersecurity, and effective taxation. It outlines how a greater focus on developing human capital, connectivity, investment in information and communication technology, and a positive regulatory environment can help digital services thrive. By underscoring the principal drivers and policies, it aims to build a better understanding of digital services to guide policy makers as they undertake domestic reforms designed to reduce the digital divide.

The publication looks at innovations happening at all stages of the food value chain: from production to manufacturing and retailing. This also includes the extended value chain, for example input supply, financial services and agribusiness support services. Yields are improving and primary production is becoming more resilient as a result of digital technologies such as precision agriculture, agricultural drones, and digital farming services and marketplaces; and novel business models such as plant factories, crowdsourcing for farmers. Data and robotics help lift productivity and food safety in the manufacturing process. Online grocery commerce and food delivery services are revolutionizing the way consumers purchase food. Distributed ledger technology, such as blockchain, allows making payments and tracing back food products along the chain in order to increase transparency and trust. New business models are springing up to shorten the chain by removing or shifting stages and to make it fairer and greener, stimulated by enabling technologies and changing customer behaviours. Innovations such as these are discussed and illustrated by almost 200 practical examples from 21 countries in the Asia-Pacific region, across various types of firms and commodities. By observing emerging trends and providing concrete examples, the book discusses the nature of these innovations, how they are affecting food systems and value chains, positively or negatively, and how to deal with trade-offs. It concludes with a reflection on the impacts of these innovations, the policy solutions identified, and lessons learned to future-proof the region’s food systems, particularly in the wake of the COVID-19 pandemic.

The Pacific Private Sector Development Initiative (PSDI) has been working to improve the lives of Pacific people for 10 years. Through reforms that encourage a well-functioning and vibrant private sector, PSDI's initiatives aim to make it easier to set up, run, and dissolve a business in the Pacific region. PSDI encourages the development of a thriving formal sector. Women in particular benefit from operating a business in the formal sector, which provides the opportunity to seek finance from commercial banks, to bid for work from the government and other organizations, and to gain protection under the law.

Micro, small, and medium-sized enterprises (MSMEs) play a significant role in economic development in Pacific island countries and offer pathways to women’s leadership and economic empowerment. This report explores the state of knowledge on women’s economic empowerment in the region, focusing on women’s entrepreneurship and MSMEs owned by women. Drawing on over 200 published papers and studies and 11 quantitative datasets, it analyzes drivers of—and barriers to—women’s economic empowerment. It looks at business ownership, formalization, and expansion; violence against women and girls; and the effects of the COVID-19 pandemic. The report provides recommendations for research, policy, and programming.

Aid for trade has an important role to play in supporting Asia and the Pacific’s recovery from the coronavirus disease (COVID-19) pandemic, especially for the region’s lower-middle-income and least developed countries. Aid for trade can help by supporting forward-looking trade and digital policies that reduce vulnerability, strengthen resilience, and foster economic growth. This report looks at how aid for trade should be modernized so it reflects new economic and trade realities including the risk of global value chains disruptions, preference erosion, the emergence of new digital technologies, and the rising need for regional cooperation.

This paper examines the role of Fintech in financial inclusion. Using Global Findex data and emerging fintech indicators, we find that Fintech has a higher positive correlation with digital financial inclusion than traditional measures of financial inclusion. In the second stage of our empirical investigation, we examine the key factors that are correlated with the Fletcher School’s three digital divide – gender divide, class (rich-poor) divide and rural divide. The results indicate that greater use of fintech is significantly associated with a narrowing of the class divide and rural divide but there was no impact on the gender divide. These findings imply that Fintech alone may not be sufficient to close the gender gap in access to financial services. Fintech development may need to be complemented with targeted policy initiatives aimed at addressing the gender gap directly, and at changing attitudes and social norms across demographics.

The 14th Australasian Centre on Social and Environmental Accounting Research Conference (A-CSEAR 2015) is being held on 10-11 December 2015 at Macquarie University, Sydney, Australia. The Conference Chair is Dr John Dumay and the Programme Chair is Dr James Hazelton, both from Macquarie University. ACSEAR provides an opportunity for individuals researching and working in the field of social and environmental accounting in both public and private sectors, to come together to exchange ideas and discuss current research in the field. The theme for the conference this year is ‘Partnerships’, reflecting the belief amongst our community that achieving progress requires partnerships of all types – between academics of different disciplines, between industry and academia, between government and stakeholders, and of course between members and professional bodies. The keynote speakers for the conference are Charles de Villiers from Auckland University of Technology, New Zealand on the topic Theorising the interactions among legitimacy accountability and pro-activity in the social sphere; Helen Tregidga from Auckland University of Technology, New Zealand talking about Corporate chameleons greenwashing and counter narratives”; Markus J. Milne from the School of Business and Law at the University of Canterbury, New Zealand on the topic of Crass empiricism and the social construction of corporate environmental performance and Lee D. Parker from the School of Accounting, RMIT University, Melbourne, Australia who will address to issue of Accounting for CSR: Revisiting the agenda. ACSEAR received 60 abstract submissions. After the double-blind peer review process 21 academic research papers, have been accepted for publication in these conference proceedings. These papers represent research from around the world, including Australia, Brazil, China, Fiji, Iran, Italy, Japan, New Zealand, South Africa, UK and the USA.

This report analyzes e-commerce in Asia and the Pacific, assesses its environmental impact, and explains why providing adequate internet, online payments, and last-mile logistics is key to creating a sustainable and inclusive digital marketplace. Noting the region makes up the largest share of the world’s online retail market, it tracks the impact of the pandemic and emphasizes the need to level the playing field for small businesses. It outlines ways for companies to measure their carbon footprint, highlights the potential risk of anti-competitive behavior, and explains the need to improve digital taxation policies in line with e-commerce’s rapid growth.