ATLANTA, July 24, 2024— CARE has become a global signatory of the Women Entrepreneurs Finance Code (WE Finance Code), a trailblazing initiative aimed at driving systemic change within the financial ecosystem to bridge the gender finance gap. By joining, CARE commits to championing women-led businesses and working to eliminate financing gaps for women entrepreneurs.
Women entrepreneurs face significant obstacles to realize their full potential. It is estimated that 400 million women entrepreneurs around the world have $1.7 trillion in unmet financing needs. Yet small businesses play a major role in economies and women borrowers are a strategic client segment for banks and fintechs.
“We’ve seen the power of designing with and for women to improve financial access, and CARE is excited to formally join WE Finance Code to strengthen these efforts,” said Rathi Mani-Kandt, Director, CARE Women’s Entrepreneurship and Financial Inclusion. “Sex disaggregated data is the first step to understanding opportunities and gaps for women small business owners. We are determined to make market systems work for women by working with financial service providers committed to intentionally design for and serve women entrepreneurs.”
Adapting financial products via women-centered design offers banks an opportunity to meet women’s needs. The Strive Women program, implemented by CARE and supported by the Mastercard Center for Inclusive Growth, works with local banks to do just that, whether it be flexible loan repayment options, removing restrictions for co-signers, requiring land or other collateral, allowing references instead of traditional credit history, or including health insurance. CARE’s programming to improve access and gender inclusive financing has unlocked $150M+ in loans for small businesses.
“As the momentum of the WE Finance Code continues to grow, we are excited to have CARE joining as a Global Signatory to champion gender equality with their local and global networks. This partnership will deepen systemic change and further support women entrepreneurs around the world,” said Wendy Teleki, Head of Women Entrepreneurs Finance Initiative (We-Fi) Secretariat at the World Bank.
The WE Finance Code (the Code), coordinated by We-Fi, is a global multi-stakeholder approach that drives commitment and actionable change towards gender-inclusive financing. It offers a comprehensive framework for financial institutions and stakeholders, guiding them towards practices that enhance access to finance, resources, and support for women-led businesses in developing countries.
As part of this commitment, CARE will designate a senior leader to drive our efforts in supporting women-led businesses and encourage others to join the cause. CARE will encourage partners to expand the availability and use of supply-side data on the level of financing provided to women-led firms. CARE, together with partners, will develop new financial products and services to support women entrepreneurs, set targets, and increase financing.
About CARE
Founded in 1945 with the creation of the CARE Package®, CARE is a leading humanitarian organization fighting global poverty. CARE places special focus on working alongside women and girls. Equipped with the proper resources, women and girls have the power to lift whole families and entire communities out of poverty. In 2023, CARE worked in 109 countries, reaching 167 million people through more than 1,600 projects. To learn more, visit www.care.org
About the WE Finance Code
The Women Entrepreneurs Finance Code (the WE Finance Code or, simply, the Code) is a commitment by financial services providers, regulators, development banks, and other financial ecosystem players to work together to increase funding provided to women-led micro, small and medium enterprises (WMSMEs) around the world, so that they can grow and add value to the economy and their communities. Officially launched in October 2023 at the World Bank – IMF Annual Meetings in Marrakech, the WE Finance Code will be piloted in 24 countries across the world. To learn more, visit www.wefinancecode.org.
For media inquiries, please contact:
usa.media@care.org and Lucie Cregeur, CARE
Sean Ding, We-Fi Secretariat