Experts identify women’s inclusion key to expanding financial markets
Onome Amuge
L-R: Jameelah Sharrieff-Ayedun, chief executive officer, Credit Registry; Inez Murray, chief executive officer, Financial Alliance for Women; Tosin Eniolorunda, founder /CEO, Moniepoint Inc; Bonaventure Okhaimo, chief operating officer, Development Bank of Nigeria; Emem Usoro, deputy governor, Operations, Central Bank of Nigeria (CBN); Nkiru Balonwu, founder, Africa Soft Power Group & advisor to the CBN Governor at the 2nd International Financial Inclusion Conference 2024 which was held at the Landmark Arena, Lagos
For financial inclusion to truly flourish, particularly among women, it must be viewed as a critical component of economic and business growth, backed by solid data and a clear understanding of the profitability of serving women. Treating financial inclusion as a mere buzzword, charity, or checkbox exercise undervalues its potential as a catalyst for sustainable socioeconomic development, particularly for female entrepreneurs and consumers.
This was the thrust of an engaging plenary session, Leveraging Data to Accelerate Access to Finance for Woman Owned and Women-Led Enterprises in Nigeria which was moderated by Emem Usoro, the deputy governor, operations, Central Bank of Nigeria , at the second edition of the International Financial Inclusion Conference 2024 organised by the Central Bank of Nigeria and other critical stakeholders with the theme “Inclusive Growth: Harnessing Financial Inclusion for Economic Development.
The conference served as a key platform for experts from various sectors to engage in meaningful dialogue around the pressing issues related to financial inclusion in Nigeria. Speakers global thought leaders, industry practitioners, and other stakeholders, delved into crucial topics such as the acceleration of financial inclusion in Nigeria, showcasing progress on gender-inclusive financing, highlighting innovative solutions for financial inclusion, and exploring ways to deepen financing and capacity building for Micro, Small and Medium Enterprises (MSMEs), which play a vital role in driving economic growth.
Speaking at the event, Tosin Eniolorunda, chief executive officer and founder of Moniepoint Inc noted that financial service providers play a vital role in supporting gender-inclusive finance and that by collecting and analysing data on gender trends in small business performance, they can craft better policies, targeted products, and support services that encourage more women entrepreneurs.
Drawing from data curated from the Moniepoint platform, he averred that, “women-owned businesses are more likely to stay active and show higher engagement rates in financial transactions.”
“In cases where financial support has been extended—through investments, KYC compliance, or the provision of tools like point-of-sale devices—female-led businesses have a 7.2 percent higher activity rate than their male counterparts while looking at the gender relations with credit products, “women-owned businesses have an 87.5 percent lower loan non-performance rate (NPL) than male-owned enterprises.”
Eniolorunda also made a case for the economic potential of investing in women entrepreneurs, who have proven to be diligent and enhance profitability while calling stakeholders to pay attention to the need to drive financial inclusion in the Northern part of the country.
He continued, “Data is the new oil,” and its application in the financial sector could be transformative for women-led businesses.
Echoing similar sentiments, Jameelah Sharrieff-Ayedun, chief executive officer, Credit Registry, noted that 90 percent of women’s income that they receive goes back to the communities and their families. As such, when women have access to credit, the community is enhanced, families are better off which is why it’s important that they can access this funding.
Other panelists included Inez Murray, chief executive officer, Financial Alliance for Women, and Bonaventure Okhaimo, the chief operating officer, Development Bank of Nigeria, who expressed belief that creating an enabling environment, with increased investor participation coupled with the willingness of other stakeholders to sit around the table and have frank conversations will move the needle on financial inclusion for women owned businesses.
In her summation, Emem Usoro, deputy governor, operations, Central Bank of Nigeria,acknowledged some of the structural challenges that might require time and resources to be addressed including cultural practices and less systemic ones such as distance to financial services providers that stifle the participation of women owned businesses, while signposting the power of data to serve as a catalyst for inclusive growth and its viability for economic planning .