To advance women’s financial inclusion, financial regulators must recognize that men and women experience the financial sector differently. This working paper provides a framework to assess how regulation can impact men and women differently. It aims to motivate regulators to move from gender-blind, to gender intentional approaches.
Nano, micro, and small enterprises, particularly nano enterprises and those led by women, encounter substantial financial obstacles. Our latest research underscores the necessity for tailored financial solutions and hybrid approaches to enhance financial inclusion for the smallest firms, enabling them to grow and thrive.
The world faces urgent challenges as risks intensify and interconnect, amplifying vulnerabilities, especially for low-income populations and small and medium enterprises (MSEs). If left unaddressed, these vulnerabilities can create ripple effects with national, regional, and global consequences. This paper highlights the importance of inclusive finance as an indispensable component of resilience responses, and calls on everyone working on increasing resilience to leverage inclusive finance to enhance the reach, speed, and impact of their work.
As climate-related shocks become more frequent, communities need access to finance that helps them cope with and recover from damage and loss, yet current efforts to strengthen financial systems’ resilience often overlook the importance of inclusion. This paper outlines how governments and funders can foster inclusive financial systems that enhance climate adaptation and resilience.
Cash transfers are among the most effective tools for social protection but delivering them in fragile contexts remains a major challenge due to interruptions in financial sector development efforts, limited government capacity, and difficulties reaching remote communities. This paper presents ways that social protection funders can invest to achieve outcomes for both programs and recipients.
Already reaching over half the world’s population, social protection systems present an untapped opportunity to channel climate funds to help vulnerable communities adapt to climate change, enhancing the reach, efficiency, and impact of climate finance.
Addressing gender biases in financial products is crucial. Financial institutions should understand gender dynamics, build organizational capacity, and design inclusive products. This report offers ten guidelines for financial institutions to adopt a strategy that enhances the financial inclusion of women, recognizing them as a profitable yet underserved customer segment.
Women-led nano and micro enterprises (WNMEs) are vital for providing livelihoods, boosting communities, and driving local economies. However, they face barriers like insufficient start-up capital and limited networking. This publication delves deeper the tailored solutions needed to support their growth based on in depth research in India, Kenya and Uganda.
Segmentation and market sizing helps in allocating development efforts, guide investments, and identify policy gaps for women-led nano and micro enterprises (WNME). This technical guide offers steps to understand the WNME landscape, design targeted products, and foster inclusivity for growth.
This paper introduces a menu of 19 indicators to measure Women's Economic Empowerment (WEE) through increased financial inclusion. Developed with experts and the FinEquity community, it provides actionable guidance for stakeholders to assess and track WEE outcomes, generating evidence to drive more effective financial inclusion interventions across diverse contexts.