Mayada El-Zoghbi

Mayada El-Zoghbi is the managing director of the Center for Financial Inclusion at Accion. Until September 2019, Ms. El-Zoghbi was a senior financial sector specialist and led CGAP’s strategy, research and development unit. Her work focused on leading CGAP’s research on women’s financial inclusion, financial services in crisis environments and other emerging topics.

Before joining CGAP, she founded and managed a development consulting firm working with funding agencies such as the IFC and USAID. She led numerous technical assistance, evaluation, and research assignments and also served as a research director for a USAID knowledge management initiative on microfinance and conflict, where she authored numerous papers and facilitated many industry learning events. She holds a master’s degree in international affairs from SIPA at Columbia University and a bachelor's degree in business from the University of Minnesota. She is bilingual in Arabic and English.

By Mayada El-Zoghbi

Blog

The Pandemic Wake-Up Call: Gender Norms Matter in Financial Inclusion

COVID-19 is the latest reminder that the norms constraining women’s economic participation need to be addressed in global development efforts, including in financial inclusion.
Blog

Mapping a Pathway to Improved Well-Being for Young People

What are the links between financial services and young people's educational and job opportunities? Here are three insights.
Research

Emerging Evidence on Financial Inclusion

Recent research on the impact of financial services on the lives of low-income people tend to focus on microcredit or a single financial product. Recognizing the need for a more nuanced and clearer impact narrative, this Focus Note synthesizes evidence since 2014.
Blog

Is Poverty Reduction the Right Outcome for Financial Services?

Today, the global development community generally accepts that poverty is more than just a lack of income. What do multidimensional concepts of poverty mean for those who see poverty reduction as the ultimate goal of financial inclusion?
Blog

Does Financial Inclusion Impact the Lives of the Poor?

A growing body of evidence is emerging on financial inclusion. The lack of a cohesive, nuanced story to bring the evidence together is leading to wildly different and overly simplistic interpretations.