Gender Program Highlights

IFC Receives Good Rating on Gender Institutional Performance
Following a gender equality institutional assessment of IFC, the Canadian International Development Agency (CIDA), one of IFC's donors, rated IFC a "3 - promising" on a scale of 1 to 4. The assessment included a review of IFC's gender mainstreaming agenda and the initiatives put in place to support this mandate. The rating highlights IFC's commitment in creating opportunities for women professionals internally and women in business externally. Read more on the CIDA website »



IFC's International Women Day's Celebration: Reinforcing IFC's Commitment to Create Opportunities for Women in Business
On the occasion of International Women's Day, IFC, member of the World Bank Group, celebrated a range of achievements that better leverage the untapped potential of women in emerging markets. The day of celebration also offered an occasion for participants to share-lessons learned on how to create more opportunities for women in business world wide. Read more...



IFC Partners with the Global Reporting Initiative (GRI) to improve corporate reporting of gender issues
This joint twelve month research and consultation project aims to help companies see the business value of gender inclusion. This global initiative, for which the governments Germany, Iceland, and Switzerland are lead sponsors, seeks to help enterprises tap emerging best practices in sustainability reporting, achieve bottom-line benefits, and create new opportunities for women in the private sector by better understanding and managing gender perspectives in their businesses.

• Visit the Gender and Sustainability Reporting Website
• For additional information, contact Carmen Niethammer.

Women-Owned Businesses in Africa: Growth Market for Banks
Women entrepreneurs are a great untapped market for African banks. Financing them is good for business and good for development. IFC's integrated program of investment and advisory services addresses this issue, providing path-breaking local financial institutions with financing and hands-on support from industry leaders in this critical area. Download the publication [PDF]



Integrating Women into Mining Operations: The Examples of Newmont Ghana and Lonmin South Africa
This SmartLesson looks at how IFC's Gender Program was able to implement strategies to help two IFC mining clients better integrate women into their operations. The Lesson also shows how important it is to be flexible when dealing with clients who have different impulses and requirements, and how to leverage IFC colleagues for greater mainstreaming. Download the publication [PDF]



Voices of Women Entrepreneurs in Rwanda
IFC and the Rwanda Chamber of Women Entrepreneurs has released a report that reveals the extent of female participation in the private sector and their growing leadership role in Rwanda's development. The new report, Voices of Women Entrepreneurs in Rwanda, provides new information on how policymakers can support women in business. Download the publication [PDF]: English | Français



Women Entrepreneurs Get Increasing Support From Banks
IFC and the Global Banking Alliance for Women (GBA) recently met in London for the alliance's 8^th annual summit. Participants discussed ways to promote increased access to finance for women entrepreneurs. According to GBA, supporting women entrepreneurs leads to greater economic growth in developing countries. IFC has served as the alliance's secretariat since 2005. Full story »



IFC and MI-BOSPO Launch "Voices of Women Entrepreneurs in Bosnia and Herzegovina"
IFC and MI-BOSPO, a leading micro-credit organization in Bosnia and Herzegovina, launched the report of "Voices of Women Entrepreneurs in Bosnia and Herzegovina". The report documents the challenges faced by women entrepreneurs in the country, and highlights the success stories of women who overcame those obstacles. The number of women entrepreneurs in Bosnia and Herzegovina is growing despite challenges involving licensing, taxation, labor, and access to finance. Boosting female entrepreneurship in Bosnia and Herzegovina by tackling the main issues identified in the report will help a well-educated and underutilized talent pool participate in the country's economic growth. Download the publication...



IFC Partners with Global Reporting Initiative to Improve Corporate Reporting on Gender Issues (September 2008)
IFC signed an agreement with the Global Reporting Initiative (GRI) for a twelve month research and consultation project to help private enterprises worldwide create new opportunities for women, adopt best practices in sustainability reporting, and improve their bottom lines. The project will develop a Gender Sustainability Reporting Resource Guide intended for companies that want to establish themselves as leaders in managing gender issues.

This project is part of a larger IFC-GRI partnership to help companies adopt sustainability reporting as a tool for improving environmental, social, and business performance. The governments of Germany, Iceland, and Switzerland are lead sponsors of the project. Read more on Gender and CSR. For more information, please contact contact Carmen Niethammer.



Lonmin - IFC Partnership Empowers Local Women in Construction (August 2008)
IFC has been providing advisory services to Lonmin PLC, a leading platinum producer, to enable them to better integrate gender dimensions into their operations and meet their increased hiring targets, as per the South African Mining Charter requirements. Lonmin recently published their 2007 Sustainable Development Report which talks about Lonmin's Race and Gender strategy and mentions first results, such as the hiring of women-owned companies for construction of family units and hostels. To read more, download the report. [PDF]



IFC Promotes Research on Women's Entrepreneurship in Tunisia (June 2008)
The Tunisian Chamber of Women Entrepreneurs (Chambre Nationale Des Femmes Chefs D'Entreprises, CNFCE), and the Higher Institute of Management (Institut Supérieur de Gestion, ISG) on June 4, 2008, launched a report on "Women Business Owners in Tunisia" under the patronage of Mrs. Sarah Kanoun Jarraya, Tunisian Minister of Women Affairs, Family and Children and the Elderly. The report identifies access to international trade, utilization of information communication technology, and access to finance among the challenges facing women entrepreneurs in Tunisia. It is a result of a regional project in which IFC together with the Center of Arab Women for Training and Research (CAWTAR) teamed-up businesswomen associations and research centers to better understand the needs of women entrepreneurs. Download the report (French only) [PDF]



IFC Promotes Research on Women's Entrepreneurship in the United Arab Emirates
The Dubai Business Women Council, a subsidiary of the Dubai Chamber of Commerce and Industry (DCCI), and Dubai Women's College on May 15, 2008, launched a report on "Women Business Owners in the United Arab Emirates". The report, which identifies "access to capital" as one of the main challenges facing women-owned businesses in the UAE, is a result of a regional project in which IFC together with the Center of Arab Women for Training and Research (CAWTAR) teamed-up businesswomen associations and research centers to better understand the needs of women entrepreneurs. Download the report [PDF]



IFC CEO Gender Award Launched on International Women's Day
On the occasion of International Women's Day, IFC's gender program awarded its first ever IFC CEO Gender Award to IFC's Development Effectiveness Unit. The award recognized the team's success in integrating gender into the indicators that track development outcomes of IFC's investment projects. The gender team also organized a panel discussion on "The Importance and Profitability of Financing Women Entrepreneurs in Emerging Markets." The event featured IFC client banks where IFC has supported women banking programs and their women entrepreneur customers who also shared stories of how they were able to benefit from the financing. For more information, contact Esther Dassanou.



dfcu Hosts the 6th Annual Global Banking Alliance for Women Summit
dfcu hosted the 6th Annual Global Banking Alliance for Women Summit in Kampala-Uganda on November 18 to 20, 2007. Held for the first time in Africa, the Summit presented an opportunity for participants to share experiences and best practices in the delivery of financial services to women. Attendees got to hear about research and innovations that are tackling the issues of collateral and helping to create wealth for women entrepreneurs.

The Global Banking Alliance for Women, the secretariat of which is housed in IFC, is a consortium of financial institutions that have successfully leveraged the women's market for profit. GBA members collaborate on identifying and sharing global best practices in the delivery of financial services to women.

For more information: Global Banking Alliance website | Press Release



SmartLessons Gender Competition Announces Winner
IFC's gender team congratulates the winners of its first ever gender competition — Carmen Niethammer and Hela Gharbi — for their excellent paper on conducting surveys on women's entrepreneurship.

Download the paper | About the competition

Thank you to all the participants for sharing their lessons learned on gender and private sector development.



Two New World Bank Group Studies Celebrate Tanzania's Success in Promoting Gender Equality, Recommend Further Changes
The studies, commissioned by Tanzania's Ministry of Industry, Trade and Marketing, commend the government for its progress in addressing gender inequalities in policy and legislation and recognizing the economic contributions of its women. The studies also suggest that Tanzania could gain up to one percentage point of growth by removing obstacles to women's entrepreneurship.

Gender and Economic Growth Assessment in Tanzania [PDF] underscores the importance of addressing both legislative issues and cultural norms. Voices of Women Entrepreneurs in Tanzania [PDF] is a complementary advocacy tool, based on a series of interviews with women business owners across the country. Recommendations include strengthening women's access to land, putting in place lines of credit for on-lending to women entrepreneurs, and facilitating women's access to international markets.



New Report on Arab Women Finds that Access to Capital and Business Skills are Key Challenges
Reducing the time it takes to register a business and increasing access to capital topped list of  major challenges facing women entrepreneurs in the Middle East and North Africa, according to a new report, entitled: "Women Entrepreneurs: Characteristics, Contributions and Challenges." The report is the result of a cooperative effort between the IFC and the Tunisian-based Centre of Arab Women for Training and Research. Press Release [PDF] | Full Report [PDF]



IFC Gender Team Launches New Report on Access to Finance for Women in South Africa
The new IFC study on access to finance for women entrepreneurs in South Africa reveals that black women are the most entrepreneurial segment of the population, yet the least likely to be banked.
(Report links updated, April 2007)

Executive Summary [PDF]
Sections 1-2 [PDF]
Sections 3-4 [PDF]
Sections 5-6 [PDF]
Sections 7-8 [PDF]



Realizing the Potential of Women Entrepreneurs: The Global Banking Alliance for Women
The underserved women's market in access to finance is becoming a bigger focus of banking executives around the world. While the spotlight is currently on the role microfinance has played in lifting poor women out of poverty, women’s access to SME financing is also gaining increasing attention. Read more... (PDF, 13kb)