Inspiring inclusion with Women’s World Banking
As part of Women’s History Month, we recently sat down with Mary Ellen Iskenderian, President and CEO of our nonprofit partner Women’s World Banking (WWB) to explore and showcase how we’re helping women microentrepreneurs participate in the economy while inspiring inclusion.
How does partnering with Moody’s Foundation help further your mission?
Women’s World Banking provides low-income women with access to financial services, knowledge, and markets to expand their economic assets, participation, and confidence. Women’s World Banking’s Global Network - a community of financial services partners operating across 34 emerging markets – has partnered with Moody’s Foundation to provide business management and digital skills trainings to support women entrepreneurs and women-led enterprises.
What does financial inclusion for women look like?
Financial inclusion is a stepping stone towards women’s empowerment. To be financially included, individuals and enterprises require access to affordable financial products and services including payments, savings, credit, and insurance. Today, one-third of the world’s adults—1.7 billion—are financially excluded, and more than half of them are women in emerging markets. We work with financial services providers, policymakers, and other stakeholders to economically empower women.
What are some big milestones or important achievements you would like to highlight?
For 45 years, we have been championing inclusive finance, with a focus on designing, scaling, and investing in gender-driven policy change, product solutions, and leadership programs to create economic stability and prosperity for low-income women across the globe. So far, we have reached over 37 million women in emerging markets and our goal is to reach 100 million by 2027.
What is your approach to gender lens investing?
We’re proud to be one of the first gender lens investors, having invested approximately $100M in 21 inclusive financial institutions through two funds across Asia, Sub-Saharan Africa, MENA, and Latin America. Women’s World Banking Asset Management (WAM) invests in innovative inclusive finance companies in emerging markets, helping them reach the market of financially underserved women and attract female talent.
Can you tell us about some of the policy-level changes that WWB is advocating for?
We work with regulators in developing countries to create policies that support women’s financial inclusion, increase gender diversity, and build women’s leadership. Ultimately, we seek to drive policy imperatives that lead to greater access, resilience, growth and economic empowerment for women. These include advocating for the incorporation of gender in National Financial Inclusion Strategies, the development of credit infrastructure, such as credit bureaus and moveable collateral registries, tiered Know Your Customer (KYC) requirements, and mandating gender disaggregated reporting requirements for financial service providers. This helps eliminate gender bias and improve product design, delivery, and service for women customers.
This story is part of a series highlighting the relationship between Moody’s Foundation and its partners. At Moody’s, we take a comprehensive approach to social investing, employee engagement, and pro bono service to empower small businesses and support ecosystem restoration in emerging markets.