Photo credit: Natalie Brown, 2018 CGAP photo contest.

Dear FinEquity Community,

October brought rich opportunities for learning and connection. FinEquity Africa participated in the African Inclusive Finance Week (SAM) in Nairobi, engaging with partners and exploring innovations in inclusive finance. Looking ahead, FinEquityALC will host a panel at the FinnLAC Forum in Miami this November, spotlighting gender-smart strategies in financial services across Latin America and the Caribbean.

In this edition, we are excited to share a series of key resources from CGAP on gender norms based on rigorous research and designed to support financial sector actors in building inclusive systems and unlocking women’s economic potential. These tools offer practical guidance to help translate diagnostic findings into sustainable interventions.

Let’s continue turning insights into action!

The FinEquity Team

Photo credit: MicroSave Consulting

Driving Women’s Empowerment and the Economy, One Chat at a Time

FinEquity | Oct 2025

Digital inclusion isn’t just about getting people online, it’s about recognizing the women already running businesses via WhatsApp, Facebook and Instagram. In Indonesia alone, millions of women use these platforms to sell from home, yet many remain excluded from financial services, digital tools and policymaking conversations.

This blog by MicroSave Consulting, digs into exactly how this can change.

Financing Her Health: How Maternity Wallets and Medical Loans Can Transform Maternal Care

Affordable health finance products boost resilience for urban slum dwellers in India.

FinEquity | Oct 2025

Does Financial Literacy Have the Potential to Transform Women's Lives in Africa?

BRAC shares three key takeaways from a survey of participants in their financial and digital literacy program.

FinEquity | Sep 2025

Photo credit: zeljkosantrac

A series of key resources from CGAP on gender norms:

• A practical framework to understand and act on gender norms.
• A diagnostic guide provides a field-tested methodology for diagnosing gender norm constraints.
• A design guide offers practical tools to help shape financial services that better meet women’s needs.
• A gender lens regulatory framework helps identify how regulation can impact men and women differently.

Young Women in Africa: Agents of Economic Growth and Transformation By 2030

This study examines young women’s contribution to Africa’s GDP, identifies promising sectors for their employment and entrepreneurship, and outlines key barriers to boosting their productivity by 2030.

Mastercard Foundation | Sep 2025

Empowering Female Entrepreneurship in the Pacific: Fiscal Reforms for Formalization and Growth

This report analyzes the barriers women entrepreneurs face in Pacific island countries and shows how weaving gender-sensitivity into tax design and providing tailored support can boost formalization and underpin sustainable economic growth.

Asian Development Bank (ADB) | Sep 2025

We invite all members of the FinEquity Africa community to stay engaged following the African Inclusive Finance Week (SAM), which took place from October 13 to 17, 2025, at the Kenyatta International Convention Centre (KICC) in Nairobi, Kenya. FinEquity Africa was proud to be present at the event, where we connected with key stakeholders, built new partnerships, and gained valuable insights to advance inclusive finance across the continent.

Explore videos and materials from the conference here.

Video credit: ADA

FinEquityALC Panel: Women and Financial Services

FinEquityALC is hosting the panel Women and Financial Services at the FinnLAC Forum by the Inter-American Development Bank in Miami on November 5. The session will showcase how financial institutions across Latin America and the Caribbean are integrating gender-smart strategies into their products, services, and internal operations to advance women's financial inclusion. BancoSol, Banco Adopem and Accion will share success stories, and CGAP will present its Guidelines to Adopt a Gender Perspective in Financial Institutions.

Explore the event and the agenda.

NGX Group Engages 9000 Women at FinTribe Finance Fair 2025

The NGX Group was involved in the program as part of its commitment to expanding financial inclusion and deepening retail investor participation.

Business Post

News | 27 Oct 2025

Apply for the 60 Decibels Inclusive Opportunity 2025

60 Decibels is looking for early-stage, locally-owned, and women-led B2C startups across any sector who are interested in fully-funded impact measurement.

60 Decibels

News | 07 Sep 2025

Women’s World Banking Convened Stakeholders Workshop on Women’s Digital Financial Inclusion in Nigeria

The workshop forms part of Nigeria’s broader goal of building a trillion-dollar economy by expanding access to financial services for women.

Business Day

News | 28 Aug 2025

Mastering the Strategy for Winning Women's Markets

This program is designed to help financial services professionals to develop the critical tools they need to serve women effectively using a holistic value proposition on a commercially viable basis.

Financial Alliance for Women

Upcoming Event | 01 -05 Feb 2026

Senior Officer, Diversity, Equity & Inclusion

Gates Foundation | Seattle, WA

Job Opportunity

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