Gender equality

The Africa-focused fund with a gender-inclusive strategy has invested in 18 firms in five countries in sub-Saharan Africa, almost half of which had female founding teams.

Despite significant growth, the report’s authors call for greater transparency and more credible reporting, cautioning that without these safeguards gender bonds risk becoming little more than “vanity projects”.

The DEG loan to the CRBD bank will use a guarantee from the European Fund for Sustainable Development Plus, and will support small businesses including those owned by women and young adults.

Serah Melaba, chief impact officer for Tiko, discusses tackling the triple threat of teen pregnancy, HIV and sexual and gender-based violence facing girls in sub-Saharan Africa, and how impact-linked financing is driving positive outcomes.

The initiative aims to improve access to funding for companies in sectors such as agriculture, healthcare and infrastructure, while supporting gender economic equality.

The loan is part of a $199m International Finance Corporation-led initiative to support Amartha, an Indonesia fintech company operating in rural Indonesia connecting underserved microenterprises with affordable capital.

The UK’s development finance institution, BII, has backed a fund which addresses funding gap for women-led enterprises in West Africa.

The money will be used to help solve funding gaps in transformational infrastructure projects in emerging markets, such as clean and renewable energy, sustainable mobility, health, water and sanitation.

The investment aims to support female-led enterprises and bolster climate resilience across Africa, as part of a broader mission to drive sustainable economic growth, job creation, and financial inclusion in developing markets.

Incofin is one of three portfolio managers of the Global Gender-Smart Fund, which was founded last year to address the $1.7trn gender gap in financial services in emerging markets.