Under the Women Entrepreneurs Finance Initiative (We-Fi) third round of funding totalling $49.3 million, the EBRD, the Inter-American Development Bank, the Islamic Development Bank (IsDB), The World Bank and IFC - International Finance Corporation are working to support women entrepreneurs with access to finance, markets, technology and mentoring.
The funding is expected to benefit over 15,000 women-led businesses and mobilize about $350 million of additional public and private sector resources.
Stepping up for women
The European Bank for Reconstruction and Development (EBRD) has been granted $7.36 million for its Stepping Up for Women program that aims to rapidly respond to the disproportionate pressures WSMEs face in the context of the ongoing COVID-19 related crisis. The program will deploy innovative solutions for WSMEs that will contribute to:
- improving access to markets through more inclusive supply chains
- enhancing competitiveness, growth potential, and access to finance by strengthening their ability to leverage digital technologies
- leveraging sex-disaggregated data to inform more effective public and private sector interventions. Program activities will be implemented in Kyrgyz Republic, Mongolia, Tajikistan, Uzbekistan, Egypt, and Morocco
Tackling gender policy challenges
"Really looking forward to implementing this new programme - to support women entrepreneurs to access finance, advisory know how and to tackle gender policy challenges," posted EBRD Director for Gender and Economic Inclusion, Barbara Rambousek, on social media.
Providing important access for women entrepreneurs
The Women Entrepreneurs Finance Initiative (We-Fi) is a multilateral partnership supporting women entrepreneurs with access to finance, markets, technology, mentoring, and other services, while working with governments and the private sector to improve the laws and policies inhibiting women’s businesses in developing countries.
We-Fi is supported by the governments of Australia, Canada, China, Denmark, Germany, Japan, the Netherlands, Norway, the Russian Federation, the Kingdom of Saudi Arabia, the Republic of South Korea, the United Arab Emirates, the United Kingdom, and the United States.
The We-Fi secretariat is housed by the World Bank and its programs are implemented by six Multilateral Development Banks.
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