MICROCAPITAL BRIEF: EU, UN Urge African Governments to Reach Out to Marginalized Women in Rural Areas with Microfinance, Securing of Property Rights

At a recent meeting in Rwanda on gender-responsive budgeting held in conjunction with the European Union and the United Nations Entity for Gender Equality and the Empowerment of Women (UN Women), African governments were urged to reach women in rural areas through microfinance schemes and otherwise involving women in financial services. Other recommendations from the meeting include the need for national systems to provide more accurate gender-related data and the need to increase women’s access to land ownership and other property rights in rural areas.

Rwanda is cited as a role model for other African countries in promoting gender equity because of the success of women in various leadership roles there including holding the majority of parliament seats as of July. Rwanda is currently involved in a three-year pilot program “Gender Equitable Local Development (GELD),” which is organized by UN Women and the United Nations Capital Development Fund (UNCDF) to focus on improving women’s access to microfinance resources through gender-responsive planning and budgeting. GELD is funded by the Belgian government, UNCDF and the United Nations Development Fund for Women (UNIFEM) and is also being implemented in Mozambique, Rwanda, Senegal, Sierra Leone and Tanzania.

Diana Ofwona, regional programme director for UN Women, is quoted as saying, “It is important to further promote gender equality through women’s ownership of development initiatives, such as microfinance schemes. It [is] a way to increase efficient coordination in gender-responsive budgeting.”

By Carol Kim, Research Associate

About United Nations Capital Development Fund (UNCDF): The United Nations Capital Development Fund (UNCDF) provides investment capital and technical advice to developing countries to promote private sector development including microfinance. UNCDF currently invests in thirty-eight of the least developed countries with a total programme portfolio amounting to approximately USD 200 million. Through its programs, UNCDF strives to contribute to the attainment of the Millennium Development Goals (MDGs).

Sources and Additional Resources:

Inter Press Service News: “Governments Need to Reach Out to Rural Women”, July 2011, http://ipsnews.net/news.asp?idnews=56687

United Nations Development Fund for Women: “Gender Equity in Local Development Strengthened in Rwanda”, http://www.unifem.org.au/AnnouncementRetrieve.aspx?ID=28627

MicroCapital.org: “MICROCAPITAL BRIEF: African Development Bank (AfDB) Loan Guarantee Scheme Provides Loans to Women Whose Businesses are Too Big for Microfinance, June 22, 2011, https://www.microcapital.org/microcapital-brief-african-development-bank-afdb-loan-guarantee-scheme-provides-loans-to-women-whose-businesses-are-too-big-for-microfinance/

MicroCapital.org: “MICROCAPITAL BRIEF: Rwanda’s Bank of Kigali Announces Three Microfinance Products Targeting Rural Financial Inclusion”, May 31, 2011, https://www.microcapital.org/microcapital-brief-rwanda’s-bank-of-kigali-announces-three-microfinance-products-targeting-rural-financial-inclusion/

MicroCapital’s Universe Profile: United Nations Capital Development Fund (UNCDF), https://www.microcapital.org/microfinanceuniverse/tiki-index.php?page=United+Nations+Capital+Development+Fund+%28UNCDF%29

Browse the MicroCapital Universe and add your entry to the wiki at https://www.microcapital.org/microfinanceuniverse/

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