What are our Future FinTech Champions learning at the moment? And what are their thoughts on the current development of FinTech? Read through this submission from one of our FFCs, Hudaa Pokeerbux, currently studying Business Computing and Data Analytics @ Middlesex University [Submission made in September 2025].

In Port Louis, a street vendor, Aisha counts her day’s earnings in tightly folded notes. She has no bank account and no credit history. Not far away, another Mauritian uses an AI-powered microloan app to buy supplies within seconds. This contrast is not unique to Mauritius; it reveals the chasm between exclusion and possibility across Sub-Saharan Africa. The question is clear: how can technology bridge this gap? Increasingly, the answer lies in AI and Data Science.

Sub-Saharan Africa has more than doubled account ownership over the past decade- from just 23% of adults in 2011 to over 55% in 2021, yet disparities remain between different population groups (CGAP, 2022; World Bank, 2024). In Mauritius while banking penetration exceeds 90%, pockets of exclusion remain among low-income households, micro-entrepreneurs, and those in rural areas (Bank of Mauritius, 2023). This inclusion gap smothers opportunity, resilience, and growth, demanding innovative tools that go beyond conventional banking.

Artificial intelligence (AI) and data science offer precisely such tools. AI can unlock credit without collateral by drawing on alternative data sources such as mobile usage patterns, utility payments, and transaction histories. These innovations enable credit assessments for individuals excluded from traditional scoring models (CGAP, 2023). Machine learning also enhances fraud protection by detecting suspicious activity in real-time, which is vital in economies transitioning to digital-first transactions. Beyond this, AI-driven interfaces and chatbots in local languages are making finance more accessible to low-literacy populations, tailoring services to context and culture (World Bank, 2025). Last but not least, data analytics enables financial institutions to create solutions that are inclusive at scale by catering to gig workers, women entrepreneurs, and smallholder farmers. For Mauritius and Africa, this is not just about technology—it is about equity, empowerment, and opportunity.

Mauritius is positioning itself as an emerging AI–fintech nexus, serving as a testbed for inclusive innovation. Supported by investments exceeding USD 50 million in digital infrastructure and talent development, as well as a regulatory sandbox framework that welcomes experimentation, the country is quietly becoming an enabler of responsible fintech growth (iAfrica, 2025; Bizweek.mu, 2024). Rather than adopting a “loud” leadership role, Mauritius offers itself as a subtle yet strategic hub where technology, regulation, and inclusion intersect.

With strong international linkages to Europe, India, and Asia, Mauritius is uniquely placed to pilot AI-driven financial solutions locally and scale them regionally.

Still, structural and ethical challenges persist. Cash remains dominant, accounting for over 90% of transactions across Mauritius and much of Africa, thereby limiting the availability of digital data required to train AI models effectively (Mauritius Africa FinTech Hub, 2024). Without careful design, AI algorithms risk reinforcing existing inequalities by unintentionally discriminating against women, rural workers, or those in the informal economy (World Bank Blogs, 2024c). Accessibility gaps also remain, with smartphone penetration and digital literacy uneven across demographics (GSMA, 2025). These realities remind us that technology alone cannot solve financial exclusion- equity, ethics, and governance must guide its application.

Lessons from across the continent demonstrate what is possible when innovation meets inclusion. Kenya’s M-Pesa transformed financial access by enabling savings, payments, and microcredit, lifting millions out of poverty- particularly women (Suri & Jack, 2016). In West Africa, UEMOA countries saw financial inclusion rise from 56% to 71% between 2018 and 2022, thanks to mobile money platforms (Techpoint Africa, 2025). Today, Africa leads the world in mobile money, with 1.1 billion registered accounts processing more than USD 1.1 trillion annually (GSMA, 2025). These models provide powerful roadmaps that Mauritius can adapt- harnessing AI to extend microloans to informal vendors, tailoring savings plans to seasonal workers and offering AI-driven financial mentors to gig workers and farmers in their own languages.

What would these solutions mean in practice? Imagine Aisha, the Port Louis street vendor, gaining instant access to a small credit line scored through her mobile usage history. Or an informal fisher in Rodrigues receiving AI-powered budgeting advice in Creole. These are not abstract possibilities- they are achievable pathways if technology, policy, and purpose align. By building inclusive data ecosystems, nurturing regional collaboration, and embedding ethics at the core of AI deployment, financial services in Mauritius and Sub-Saharan Africa can be reimagined as inclusive rather than exclusive. Here, MAFH and its ecosystem partners can play a catalytic role. By promoting knowledge-sharing, policy advocacy, and startup support, they can ensure Mauritius not only closes its own inclusion gap but also exports solutions to the wider African continent.

Mauritius’ growing fintech ecosystem shaped by regulators, innovators, educators, and financiers already serves as a quiet but powerful engine of change. Through initiatives that promote collaboration and knowledge sharing, it holds the potential to not only address local financial exclusion but also scale responsible AI-driven solutions across Africa. Byconnecting local innovation to continental needs, Mauritius can function as a bridge

between Africa and global fintech ecosystems, amplifying inclusion through deliberate, sustainable design (World Bank, 2025; Mauritius Africa FinTech Hub, 2021–24).

Aisha’s story- one of exclusion and one of possibility- reminds us that financial inclusion is more than a technical issue; it is about dignity, empowerment, and opportunity. With thoughtful innovation, strong governance, and a shared vision, AI and data science can transform finance into a bridge rather than a barrier.

Technology can be inclusion- but only if we design it consciously, deploy it equitably, and guide it with purpose. So let me leave you with this final question:

Can Mauritius leverage AI-powered finance not just to grow- but to include everyone in that growth?