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IFC PACIFIC MICROFINANCEINITIATIVE (PMI)
- Gender Strategy Framework -
IFC experience – Women present an untapped Business
Opportunity
Access to financial services in the Pacific is poor to start
…. COUNTRY
Adult Population (millions)1
% Banked
(Adults)1
# of ATMs per 1000 Adults2
# of POS per 1000 Adults2
Mobile-cellular subscriptions per 100 inhabitants3
Fiji 0.5 39% 0.31 8.33 81.1
Vanuatu 0.2 25 0.1 0.3 119.0
PNG 3.6 8% 0.22* 1.5* 27.8
Samoa 0.1 19% 0.19 3.16 91.4
Solomon Islands 0.3 15% 0.1 0.3 5.6
Tonga 0.1 40 0.24 2.05 52.2
Timor Leste 0.6 13% 0.01 0.73 53.4 United Kingdom 49 91% 1.3 23.9 130.8
1. Financial Access Initiative, "Half the World Unbanked", October 2009
2. World Bank Group, "Payment Systems Worldwide - Outcomes of the Global Payment Systems Survey 2010"3. International Telecommunication Union, ICT Indicators database, November 2011* Estimates
Microfinance is challenging for providers
Product FI view point Customer view
Micro loans:- <$10,000- Commercial purpose
Specialised lending – not mainstream banking.Limited collateralSmall value loans / low volume > high rates to cover costs
Limited commercial opportunities that generate regular income to pay interest.Alternate sources of money
Micro deposits High system liquidity in Islands – limited government borrowing and lending opportunities to invest – no desire for small expensive deposits – no need to pay interest to customers
- Cash is the low cost option- expenses exceed income so saving is difficult- access to financial services is so low that cash is easiest
An Overview of Gender Issues in the Pacific region
Island economies have long been challenged by geography, labor skills and tiny economies-of-scale, which contributed to isolate women and men, especially in rural areas, and thus to maintain strong traditional gender roles
What works for one country might not be relevant for another, given very different contexts, vulnerabilities and capacities
An Overview of Gender Issues in the Pacific region
Some of the most pressing human rights in the region such as: widespread poverty, violence against women and children, lack of judicial independence, weak governance are challenges to gender achievements
PICs Governments (except Tonga) adopted the convention to end the discrimination against women (CEDAW), yet action is slow to materialize. Millennium Development Goals (MDG) have provided a “call for action”: Goal 3 calls for promoting gender equality and empowering women, PICs are slow to comply…
An Overview of Gender Issues in the Pacific region
Cultural attitudes and normative discrimination restrict women’s full participation in economic activities:Traditional gender roles persist throughout the region;
differences among Melanesia, Micronesia, Polynesia Kastom, a defining characteristic of the Melanesian
culture and genderWantok could be equated to a traditional safety net
can have adverse effects, is fundamental to the Melanesian culture
Women receive less business training and development than men and workplace policies are not women friendly
An Overview of Gender Issues in the Pacific region
On paper laws are generally the same for men &women but in practice they are not implemented in a gender equal manner
Discriminatory provisions against women in the legal framework governing property rights
Sex disaggregated statistics are needed to:Monitor gender gaps and their change over timeLobby and advocate for gender equality showing the
extent of existing discrimination Inform to which extent business regulations affect women
relative to men, especially re. time and social networks
An Overview of Gender Issues in the Pacific region
Women have reduced access to:Resources, including
- land – issues with ownership & inheritance - movable assets
Capital: financial, human, social, timeFormal Business Registration Decision MakingSecurity – physical: widespread violence against women
This hinders women’s ability to engage in economic activities, as employees and/or as successful business owners
Fewer women are employed as compared to men
Women are discriminated against: Horizontal segregation: women are employed in only a few
economic sectors: services, sales and “elementary occupations”
Vertical segregation: “the glass ceiling”: women have less access to decision-making
Pay gap: women are paid smaller salaries than men
Employment data in selected PIC’s
Timor Leste 30% of women of working age are employed, mostly in rural areas45% of women work on their own
Papua New Guinea
73% of women>15 economically active
Fiji 38% of women are employed rural/urban 40% of working women self-employed
Samoa 20% of women >15 employed 75% rural 43% of women receive income/remittances
Examples from the Pacific region: Women as a Business
OpportunityWomen are important economic actors in the Pacific
region as producers and sellers of goods and services
Women business entrepreneurs have a good track record as savings and credit clients
Women are better development agents than men
Across the region women tend to manage the household finances more than men
Women are highly interested in insurance products and
Are more frequent remitters
Women are less “banked” than men
30% of rural women have bank accounts vs. 45% of men (PFIP, Fiji 2009)
Same disparity for savings, loans, investments
Women understand & manage household finances better than men
Household Financial Management and GenderMen Women
Keep Financial Records 18% 63%
Checks bills & accountsare correct
45% 66%
Have a household budget 37% 57%
Fewer women are employed as compared to men
« The wellbeing of a rural household can be quantifiably improved if one person in that household attends financial literacy training and has a savings account. A significantly higher level of wellbeing is achieved when that person is a woman ».
Conclusion from Financial Capability, Financial Competence
and Wellbeing in Rural Fijian Households,
PFIP Note No 1, December 2009
Women participate less at financial training than men
Reasons for not participating at financial literacy training workshop
Men Women
Was not in the village when training was held
60% 33%
Had other work or family commitments
25% 20%
Was not aware of training or was not asked
10% 35%
Was not interested in attending 5% 9%
FI’s Have Successfully Invested in Women and Gender-diverse Policies
Standard Chartered - embarked on a company-wide coordinated approach to step up gender diversity in 2005. Now, 22% of senior managers and 33% of middle managers are women. Several of its country offices are headed by women CEOs
Bancosol, Bolivia – introduced a full-coverage maternity insurance product. Women are over 60% of microinsurance clients & 45% of borrowers
Kashf Foundation, Pakistan – offers credit exclusively to women and It supports women empowerment at client and staff level for which it has set gender diversity targets closely monitored by its president
Banco ADOPEM, Dominican Republic – originally a MFI, 89000 active borrowers and savers, 77% women, 52% rural clients. In addition it provides insurance products and remmitances. A member of Women’s World Banking it also promotes women empowerment at institution level
The business case for investing in women and promoting stronger
gender diversity within FIs
FI’s can grow their customer base by targeting women clients
Women clients make for a better bottom line
Promoting gender diversity makes for a more productive, innovative workforce
FI’s can improve their image by investing in women
Examples of Financial Institutions in the Pacific
Region that have successfully targeted women
MFIs (see case studies): - Moris Rasik and Tuba Rai Metin in Timor Leste - SPBD in Samoa, Fiji and Tonga; Vanwoods Microfinance Inc,
Vanuatu - PML and Nationwide Microbank in PNG
Local commercial and national banks: - National Development Bank of PNG - National Bank of Vanuatu
International commercial banks - Westpac in Fiji, Tonga
Insurance companies: - Life Insurance Corporation of India (LICI), Fiji and several MFIs
(ex: Timor Leste)
PNG offers substantial opportunities to FI’s to increase their female
customer base… & staffA bank that has taken the lead in targeting women
clients: PNG NDB – introduced women’s desks in 2010,: appointed women representatives at all branches to service. No of women borrowers went from 27 & USD 0.3 M in 2010 to over100 & USD 4.3 M in 2011. A call center accepts loan applications from women entrepreneurs. Women are calling from across the country. In March 2012 PNG NDB hosted a Women in Business Summit where a new website for women in business & a textile credit scheme for women was launched.
Challenges seem commensurate with PNGs economic opportunities (LNG
included), large population, sizable numbers of women potential clients
Conclusion: There are opportunities for gender
finance that make business sense
… new products, new channels of distribution
Mobile banking can channel to women – including in remote rural areas – credit, savings, remittances and insurance products
Yes, challenges exist but are worth taking given the opportunities
that are in sight!