Proto and Namibia's government announced the upcoming September 29 launch of the AI agent system for citizen support and complaint resolution during the Alliance for Financial Inclusion's Global Policy Forum in Swakopmund.
This integrated system brings together the country's main regulators to streamline complaint management and enhance consumer protection within the banking, insurance, and telecom sectors.
This deployment marks the culmination of a design and development project funded by the Gates Foundation that began earlier this year. The integrated AI solution now connects the Bank of Namibia (BON), Namibia Financial Institutions Supervisory Authority (NAMFISA), Communications Regulatory Authority of Namibia (CRAN), and the Instant Payments Namibia (IPN) into a unified citizen support platform.
Gates Foundation Senior Program Officer Anna Wallace said: "The Foundation is investing in consumer protection AI tools to build trust in digital services for the lowest-income communities. Through these projects, we aim to demonstrate the value of automated grievance redress for citizens, regulators, and governments — and spark wider adoption across emerging markets."
An integrated approach to citizen service
The system is built on the Proto AICX platform, and enables Namibian citizens to submit complaints to any of the participating agencies — without needing to know the regulatory mandates. Citizens either receive instant help or have their complaints routed to the related business for monitored resolution. The solution is built to streamline complaint handling, reduce regulatory overlap, and improve confidence in the public service ecosystem.
Following the project’s diagnostic and design phases earlier this year, Proto has implemented the unified complaints management framework and taxonomy to power the AI dialogue, data architecture, and complaints resolution workflows across the agencies.
With support from the Gates Foundation’s Inclusive Financials System program, the project uses a shared service model that enables BON, NAMFISA, CRAN, and IPN to operate the unified AI platform while maintaining their data sovereignty. The Proto AICX platform was adapted to include:
- Voice & text AI tailored to Namibian languages, starting with Oshiwambo, built on ProtoAI and fine-tuned beyond generic LLM capabilities.
- Data protection measures such as on-premise hosting and enterprise-grade security standards.
- Multi-channel access via WhatsApp, SMS, web, and voice — ensuring inclusivity regardless of tech literacy or device.
- Supervisory analytics to help regulators spot trends, flag risks, and assess the effectiveness of their consumer protection efforts.
Bank of Namibia Technical Advisor to the Governor Mr. Romeo Nel said: “This initiative marks a key milestone for us as regulators to adopt a more inclusive approach to handling complaints. As we all know, complaints come as matters of urgency. With advancements in AI, we now have the opportunity to automate this process and shift from a reactive to proactive approach that serves our people, strengthens accountability, and renews public trust. We are confident that this innovation will serve the people we represent."
Why financial inclusion depends on consumer protection
Across Africa, digital financial services like mobile money and microlending are extending access — but also introducing new risks. These include scams, mis-selling, and data misuse challenges that disproportionately impact low-income users.
According to the World Bank's 2023 Digital Finance Consumer Risks study, 90% of users in Senegal reported a consumer protection issue, and 40% lost money. When such experiences erode trust, people often opt out of the financial system altogether. Findex reports that 23% of unbanked individuals cite a lack of trust in financial institutions as their main reason for staying out.
Proto CEO Curtis Matlock said: "Namibia's upcoming launch of this integrated AI system demonstrates their leadership in regulatory innovation across Africa. By bringing together government agencies under a unified platform, Namibia is creating a model for efficient, accessible consumer protection that other nations can follow."
Regulators increasingly recognise that traditional enforcement tools are no longer sufficient in an era of rapidly evolving scams. AI-powered systems — especially those offering real-time analytics and multilingual access — are becoming critical to delivering inclusive, proactive consumer protection.
About the Bank of Namibia (BON)
The Bank of Namibia is the central bank of Namibia, responsible for promoting monetary stability and a sound financial system. It regulates banking institutions and serves as the government's banker, financial advisor, and fiscal agent.
About the Namibia Financial Institutions Supervisory Authority (NAMFISA)
The Namibia Financial Institutions Supervisory Authority regulates and supervises financial institutions and financial services in Namibia. It works to foster a stable and fair non-banking financial sector and to protect consumers of financial services.
About the Communications Regulatory Authority of Namibia (CRAN)
The Communications Regulatory Authority of Namibia regulates telecommunications services, broadcasting, postal services, and the use of the radio spectrum. It aims to promote competition, protect consumers, and ensure accessible, quality services.
About Instant Payments Namibia (IPN)
The Instant Payments Namibia (IPN) is the country's national instant payment system that facilitates real-time electronic fund transfers between financial institutions. It enables citizens and businesses to make immediate payments across different banks and payment service providers, supporting Namibia's transition to a more inclusive digital economy. IPN is a subsidiary of the Bank of Namibia.
