Searching: Research & Analysis

How To Measure Women’s Economic Empowerment in Financial Inclusion: A Menu of Indicators

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.

Investing for Financial Inclusion: Four Enablers for Outcomes Measurement and Management

Impact investors are adopting outcomes-focused impact measurement and management (IMM) to enhance transparency and mitigate risks. This approach emphasizes tracking development and intermediate outcomes and using this data for decision-making. The paper outlines key enablers to advance outcomes-focused IMM in financial inclusion investments.

Global Partnerships Case Study: Measuring and Managing Financial Inclusion Outcomes

This case study explores how Global Partnerships integrates outcomes data into investment decisions, highlighting key enablers for success, including leadership support, impact-driven strategy, and collaborative partnerships with financial service providers.

Young Women and Financial Services: Maximizing Impact

Research has shown that marginalized young women can benefit from financial services in both economic and non-economic ways. But with over half a billion women aged 15-24 in the world, the life stages, needs, and contexts of this population are tremendously diverse. Among which segments of young women could investments in improved financial services make the most impact? This infographic highlights findings from a recent CGAP segmentation exercise.

Micro and Small Enterprise Finance: Examining the Impact Narrative

Micro and small enterprises are a vital part of the livelihoods and resilience strategies of poor households across emerging markets. This deck reviews existing impact literature and identifies key knowledge gaps.

A Research and Learning Agenda for the Impact of Financial Inclusion

The financial inclusion community is renewing its efforts to understand the role financial services play in the lives of poor people and how financial services can improve their well-being. This paper proposes a learning agenda based on extensive consultation with donors, researchers, and practitioners who support financial inclusion.

Toward a New Impact Narrative for Financial Inclusion

The global development community has debated the question of how financial services impact the lives of poor people for decades. Recently, CGAP has developed a theory of change to guide the financial inclusion community toward an updated narrative that shows the many ways financial services can impact the lives of poor people.

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.

Financial Inclusion and Development: Recent Impact Evidence

This paper proposes that the accumulating body of evidence supports policy makers’ assessments that developing inclusive financial systems is an important component for economic and social progress on the development agenda.