As part of a series on the role of product design in increasing women’s use of financial services in Africa and Asia, this case study reviews a pilot savings project implemented by WomenSave, a Ugandan provider of financial training and services to women with low incomes. The goal of the project, which focused on the districts of Kanungu and Rukungiri, was to “provide local women with personalized goal-based saving, and a way to manage unforeseen financial expenses without derailing savings efforts.”
Initial market research found that clients were keen on goal-driven saving, especially to build an emergency fund. Thus the pilot project provided: (1) staff to work with clients one-on-one to “identify a financial goal, define a monthly budget and design a commitment savings plan and emergency fund with personalized terms and conditions;” (2) related financial literacy training, including on “mobile money, and knowing your rights as a client and as a woman;” and (3) savings accounts with both demand and fixed features.
Over two years, participants boosted their emergency savings from an average of USD 6 to USD 12. Meanwhile, they met fixed “savings goals focused on livestock, education, consumer goods, housing, business and health.”
Going forward, WomenSave plans to: (1) engage past participants as peer mentors; (2) work with the government to match amounts that clients save when they perform “desired actions (eg childhood immunization, increased school enrollment etc);” and (3) consider developing a mobile app to digitize the institution’s services.
This is a summary of a paper by Catherine Highet, published by FinEquity, February 2022, 4 pages, available at https://www.findevgateway.org/finequity/case-study/2022/02/informed-design-case-study-series/women-save
By Sheen Gupta, Research Associate
Additional Resources
WomenSave homepage
https://womensave.org/
Informed Design: A Case Study Series – Insights from Lucy
https://www.findevgateway.org/finequity/case-study/informed-design-case-study-series-lucy
More MicroCapital wrap-ups
https://www.microcapital.org/?s=wrap
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