Digital financial services can help close the gender gap 

Women’s limited access to finance is holding all of us back, says Mariyam Hussain Didi, Assistant Governor, Banking Operations, Maldives Monetary Authority. 

For too long, women have faced exclusion from the financial sector. In South Asia, fewer than half of women have formal banking arrangements; here in the Maldives, a 14 percent gender gap persists in access and usage of finance.  Multiple social, cultural, and institutional barriers are to blame for this unequal playing field, and tackling them is imperative. In the Maldives, where women-owned businesses account for the majority of small and medium-sized enterprises, their constrained access to financial credit is holding the entire country back.

Digital innovation can be an inclusion game-changer  

The rapid growth of digital financial services has the potential to change the landscape for women’s financial inclusion. Innovative products and services such as mobile wallets and online banking are creating unprecedented opportunities to access financial services, and to drive inclusive economic growth.  

In Kenya, India, Mexico and the Philippines, Tala’s microloan app is revolutionizing financial access for women. In the Maldives, our Instant Payment System, Favara, which lets customers send and receive money to and from anywhere in the country within seconds, is creating convenient and affordable access to digital financial services 

Around the world, new technologies are leveraging alternative data for credit assessment, bypassing the need for traditional credit history or collateral. With women less likely than men to own fixed assets, this is helping to close the gender gap. 

The need for education and enlightened policy 

Limited financial literacy is preventing many women from benefiting from technological advances. That’s why it’s vital that we actively promote digital literacy campaigns for women, which build skills and knowledge. In addition to helping women access financial services, we will unlock myriad opportunities to enhance their participation in the digital world.  

Digital literacy needs to go hand in hand with transformative financial sector policies, which promote inclusive financial solutions that address the unique challenges faced by women and other underserved communities.  

Central banks in our region are leading the change for gender equity with initiatives which tackle finance access biases, and which foster innovation. These include Pakistan’s groundbreaking Banking on Equality Policy, India’s gender-focused lending, Bangladesh’s microfinance initiatives, and Sri Lanka’s and Nepal’s support for women entrepreneurs.  

Here at the Maldives Monetary Authority, we have always championed women’s participation in the financial sector, whether through women leaders serving as role models and advocates for inclusivity and empowerment, or through the development of policies to encourage women to pursue financial-sector careers. 

The majority of our executive team has always been women. This has brought diverse perspectives, experiences, and skills to the table, enriching the decision-making processes within our organization. Policies such as granting six months of paid maternity leave were first introduced in the country by the MMA, and are now the standard for all government employees.  

Collaboration is key 

Central banks working in isolation will not be enough, however. Collaboration between governments, financial service providers, NGOs, and the private sector will be critical to expanding women’s access to finance, and to creating systems that are gender-inclusive and gender-responsive.  

Working together, we can weave gender considerations into the fabric of digital innovation, ensure regulatory policies align with gender sensitivities, and cultivate an ecosystem which prioritizes and enables women’s financial empowerment.  

Here in the Maldives, gender-centric policies will remain a key focus across all pillars of financial inclusion. The barriers preventing women from accessing financial services may be stubborn, but we are on the right path to dismantle them.