Financing Women-Led SMEs: Breaking Barriers to Capital Access

Overview

Access to capital remains one of the most significant barriers facing women entrepreneurs across Africa. This dialogue convened policymakers, financiers, and business leaders to examine structural barriers in lending, explore gender-lens investment frameworks, and identify actionable policy reforms to close the financing gap for women-led small and medium enterprises across East Africa.

Key Outcomes

• Consensus reached on a regional gender-disaggregated credit reporting framework to be piloted in Kenya and Uganda.
• Three commercial banks committed to reviewing collateral requirements for women borrowers by Q1 2025.
• A joint policy brief on blended finance mechanisms for women-led SMEs to be submitted to the East African Community Secretariat.
• Formation of a Women's Finance Working Group drawing membership from central banks, DFIs, and private sector lenders.
• Recommendation for gender-responsive credit guarantee schemes to be incorporated into national financial inclusion strategies.

Speakers