The%20business%20case%20of%20investing%20in%20women

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The business case of investing in womens
economic empowerment

• Roshaneh Zafar, Founder and Managing Kashf
  Foundation

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Content

• Evidence of Investing in women
• Barriers to Womens Economic Participation
• Kashf Rationale and Background
• The Kashf Gender friendly/Pro Women Financial
  Model
• Economic Mainstreaming
• Challenges of Inclusive Financial services

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Business case of Investing in Women

• Low participation of women in the economy has a
  high loss for families and societies
• Annual GDP loss of 0.7
• Low participation of women in the economy creates
  high dependency within families
• 21 ratio per individual
• Low participation of women in the economy creates
  lost opportunities
• 70 of the worlds poor are women (feminization
  of poverty)

Source World Bank
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Barriers to Womens Participation

• Limits on Mobility and lack of access to markets
• Crowding out in terms of access to resources
• Wage discrimination
• Triple burden and lack of access to time saving
  technologies
• Social norms that play down value of womens time
• Perceptions of women being repository of family
  honour
• Concentration in a few sectors (sewing,
  embroidery)
• Lack of access to financial services

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Rationale for Establishing Kashf Foundation

• Women matter
• Women can be active economic agents
• Poor households are bankable
• Poverty is a growing concern in Pakistan
• Specialised MF can work in the Pakistani context
• An MFI targeting poor women can be sustainable

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Kashf Achievements

• Founded in 1996 as the first specialised MFI in
  Pakistan
• Targeted women from low income urban communities
• Designed effective pro-poor pro-women products
  and services
• Strong learning approach
• First MFI to achieve financial sustainability
  (2003)
• Pioneering effort of raising US 36 million from
  commercial sources (2007)
• Trendsetter in terms of rating (JCRVIS-BBB-)
• 3rd largest MFI in Pakistan (Current outreach
  288,000 clients)

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Outreach
Cumulative Outreach 850,000 businesses US210
million disbursed
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Change, Power, Choice

• Change
• Developing a sense of self worth
• Valuing womens economic contribution/value of
  time
• Power
• Enhancing bargaining position within the
  household
• Improving/Impacting inter-spousal relationships
• Choice
• Having the right to control ones life
• Being able to choose a better life for ones
  children

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The Kashf Pro Women Approach

• Economic Leverage
• Enhanced bargaining position
• Transformation

• Through developing and designing women friendly
  financial services and products
• Through a women friendly delivery methodology
  (relying on associative strength)
• Through a sustainable, cost effective, best
  practice institution that focuses on women.
  Ensuring gender equity at all levels (Board,
  Management, Field, Clients)

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Economic Leverage

• Products
• General Loan
• Emergency Loan
• Life Insurance
• Home Improvement Loan
• Health Insurance

• Principles of Product Design
• No collateral
• No male guarantors
• Simple documentation
• Accessibility
• Overcoming literacy constraints and mobility
  barriers
• Women specific factors

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Rationale for Establishing Kashf MF Bank

• Economic mainstreaming
• Deposit led institution (scalability)
• Full suite of services (especially deposits for
  women clients)
• Access to resources (moving beyond debt led
  models)

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Designing Pro Women Savings

• Market Segmentation Exercise
• Demand Analysis
• Product Design

• 2 Market segments poverty saving upto Rs
  1,500/22 and the other segment saving upto Rs
  5,000/73
• Women were the primary savers
• Using informal sources
• Saving for life cycle events (marriages, home
  construction)
• Commitment Savings (3-8 years)/Goal Oriented
• Rs 500-5000/month (7-73)
• Pension Savings (Old Age)
• Voluntary/Demand Driven
• Co-branded

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Savings Outcomes
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Challenges

• Greater number of women use the loans themselves
• Greater number of women have control over the
  income they generate
• Greater number of women are able to graduate to
  larger loan sizes (tranform their businesses)
• Greater of number of women are able to
  control/mitigate the drudgery of their lives
  (double burden)
• Greater number of men value the income women
  bring into their homes
• Greater variety of products are available that
  are pro women with the right policies
• Greater depth of deposit products that are
  affordable, convenient and accessible

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Saima Muhammed Featured in NYT 2009