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Strong Women – Strong Economies

Increasing Women’s Financial Inclusion in Africa

Strong Women – Strong Economies

March 30, 2021

online / Zoom

Over 1.3 billion women globally are lacking access to financial products and services. The situation is especially severe in Africa where more than 70 percent of women are financially excluded. A McKinsey Global Institute study estimates that better serving women as customers of financial services and fully incorporating women into the economy would add $12 trillion to global GDP by 2025. This offers a tremendous opportunity for growth and innovation.

We discussed gender-equitable finances with our outstanding speakers on the occasion of the launch of the Generation Equality Forum 2021. The global civil society event aimed to mobilize for urgent action towards gender parity and to increase engagement for women’s economic equality and rights.

Key Topics

  • Economic Growth

    How can we ensure a more equitable and sustainable economic recovery in Europe, Africa and beyond?

  • Barriers

    What are the main systemic and structural barriers to women's access to financial services and how can we overcome them?

  • Frameworks

    What needs to be done to ensure that the necessary frameworks and regulations are in place? And what opportunities do new technologies such as mobile payments and cryptocurrencies offer women in low- and middle-income countries?

In conversation with...

Experts for financial inclusion
Dorothee Bär, Mary Ellen Iskenderian, Scheaffer Okore and Dr. Christina Tewes-Gradl

Contact Persons

Rhoda Berger, r.berger@globalperspectives.org

Supported by

Gates Foundation

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