Inclusion Interrupted: The Trifecta of Financial, Economic, and Digital Access Under Political Strain
The SDGs envision a world where no one is left behind — economically, socially, or digitally. But inclusion is not merely about access; it’s about agency, participation, and resilience. Financial inclusion, economic inclusion, and digital inclusion represent three interlocking levers of empowerment — yet their potential has been repeatedly compromised by the fragility of political will and the volatility of governance.
Financial Inclusion
This agenda focuses on enabling access to banking, credit, insurance, and other formal financial services. It is a foundational pillar for SDG 1 (No Poverty) and SDG 8 (Decent Work and Economic Growth). However, financial inclusion in many parts of the Global South has been reduced to metrics — number of accounts opened, mobile wallets registered — without ensuring productive use or financial empowerment. It often stops short of translating into economic mobility, especially when broader structural constraints remain unaddressed.
Economic Inclusion
Where financial inclusion provides the infrastructure, economic inclusion supplies the pathway to opportunity. It speaks to the right of every person to participate meaningfully in economic life — through decent jobs, entrepreneurship, fair markets, and policy representation. This is where inclusion meets structural justice. But economic inclusion has been persistently thwarted by clientelism, corruption, and exclusionary state capture, especially in countries where economic policies are not meritocratic but politically choreographed.
Digital Inclusion
Digital inclusion is the new frontier — a catalyst and amplifier of both financial and economic inclusion. In the age of digital economies and e-governance, being disconnected is equivalent to being excluded. From access to social protection to participation in digital labor markets, SDG 9 (Industry, Innovation and Infrastructure) and SDG 4 (Quality Education) cannot be realized without digital access and literacy. But once again, politics steps in: digital monopolies, censorship, neglect of rural infrastructure, and selective digitization all reflect political priorities that determine who gets connected — and how.
Three Pillars, One Faultline: Governance
Despite being technically distinct, these three forms of inclusion stand or fall together — and all are deeply political. They require trustworthy institutions, inclusive policy design, and a commitment to transparency. Where politics becomes a gatekeeper rather than a guarantor, these forms of inclusion become hollow shells, ticking boxes without shifting realities.
We’ve seen this in Lebanon, where financial access was widespread but ultimately meaningless without macroeconomic stability or deposit security. We see it in fragile states, where donor-funded digital finance projects evaporate as soon as politics interferes with telecom regulation or data flows. And we see it globally, where economic inclusion remains a distant promise in the absence of progressive taxation, labor rights, or gender-equal property ownership.
Inclusion Must Be Insulated from Politics
For inclusion to become transformation — not just access — it must be institutionalized, rights-based, and resilient to political manipulation. Otherwise, it remains conditional: granted during campaign seasons, revoked in crises, and captured by those already in power. The SDGs cannot be achieved through digital platforms alone, nor through mobile banking, nor even through job creation — unless all three forms of inclusion work in unison, protected by good governance and driven by social justice.