Accra: Mrs Graça Machel, Founder of the Graça Machel Trust, has urged bold and deliberate measures to address the gender gap in financial inclusion across West Africa. She emphasized that empowering women entrepreneurs in the digital economy is crucial for fostering inclusive economic growth, highlighting the importance of digital tools in enabling women to expand their businesses and engage in cross-border trade.
According to Ghana News Agency, Mrs Machel made these remarks at the third ECOWAS Regional Convening on Women’s Financial Inclusion in the Digital Economy in Accra. The event, themed ‘Digital Transformation and Cross Border Trade: Unlocking the Potential for Women Entrepreneurs in West Africa,’ aimed to explore strategies for advancing financial inclusion. Machel noted that platforms such as mobile money services, digital trade hubs, and e-commerce marketplaces are instrumental in providing women access to regional and international markets, overcoming traditional physical infrastructure barriers.
M
rs Machel praised the passing of Ghana’s Gender Equity Bill as a significant milestone, demonstrating the potential for transformative legislation across Africa. She pointed out that the financial inclusion gender gap in sub-Saharan Africa averages 12 per cent, with disparities reaching up to 20 per cent in countries like Nigeria. Encouragingly, mobile money services have helped narrow this gap, with Ghana seeing an increase in women’s account ownership from 54 per cent in 2017 to over 63 per cent in 2021.
She advocated for investments to enhance access and affordability of digital tools, especially in rural areas, and highlighted the need for gender-sensitive regulations to ensure equitable access to credit and trade opportunities. Machel called for collaboration among private sector actors, civil society, and international organizations to bolster solutions that empower women.
The convening gathered government officials, private sector leaders, civil society representatives, and women entrepreneurs from t
he region, all committed to exploring strategies for boosting financial inclusion. Founded in 2010, the Graça Machel Trust is a Pan-African advocacy organization dedicated to issues such as child health and nutrition, education, and women’s economic empowerment.