Barriers

  • Discriminatory laws and practices
  • Lack of gender-sensitive legal frameworks/ labor regulations
  • Barriers to obtaining official, state-issued documentation
  • Uneven implementation of laws and practices
  • Burdensome and costly regulations, policies, and procedures to start and operate business
  • Poor government outreach and information dissemination
  • Lack of information about legal and regulatory provisions
  • Inadequate/biased workplace policies, con-ditions and practices
  • Biased stereotypes of authority favoring men
  • Low level of trust in public-facing bureaucrats
  • Lack of inclusion, predictability, transparency, trust, and dialogue among stakeholders
  • Low representation of women in formal institutions (e.g. government, support organizations, business organization, etc.)
  • Low capacity of women ́s representative entities resulting in lack of participation and input into legal and regulatory decision-making
  • Weak legal/regulatory protections for financial consumers
  • Limited information and data on gender gaps in finance
  • Women´s unequal ownership, access and administrative authority (e.g., property, inheritance, collateral)
  • Gaps in the digital financial ecosystem including digital ID, digital signature, e-KYC, agent banking networks, etc.
  • Lack of an enabling environment for technology, limiting women’s access to financial services and products
  • High-risk perception of women borrowers(resulting in, e.g., higher interest rates, shorter repayment periods for women)
  • Persistent focus on traditional collateral requirements (e.g., immovable property,credit history)
  • Financial provider practices and products that do not meet women’s needs
  • Permission of male family member required to conduct financial transactions
  • Limited financial capability
  • Fewer women who have bank accounts
  • Women’s limited personal access to technology and related financial services
  • Lack of women’s familiarity with technology used to access financial products and services
  • Lack of gender-sensitive business-service ecosystem (e.g., biased trainers, mismatch between services offered and needs)
  • Lack of incentives to acquire skills due to social norms and other restrictions
  • Cost barriers to accessing training and technical assistance
  • Inadequate skills and knowledge to start, run and expand a business - e.g., financial and technical literacy, business & soft skills, and sector information
  • Lack of access to relevant business information due to restricted ability to participate in mentoring programs/networks
  • Limited relevant education
  • Limited knowledge of access to businessrelated technology tools and software
  • Restricted mobility
  • Business decisions constrained by male relatives
  • Lagging legal and regulatory provisions (e.g.,digital payments, cross-border commerce, etc.)
  • Inadequate input markets (land, labor, capital)
  • Cost barriers (compliance, formalization, informal payments)
  • Limited access to finance, inputs, tools, assets and collateral
  • Inadequate access to and limited use of technology enablers
  • Market-related information constraints (e.g.,re: input costs, prices, demand, etc.)
  • Limited access to new customers
  • Limited access to networks, (in-)formal information- sharing, and role models
  • Concentration in less profitable, lower parts of the value chain
  • Gender-based harassment in business transactions (e.g., buyers, sellers, suppliers, customs officials, etc.)

Intervention Design Matrix

Selection Potential Interventions Technology Enabler applied in Intervention ID/Link Project Name & Summary

Organize business plan competitions and entrepreneurship programs for WSMEs

Awareness campaign on social media platforms, digital program application

P151831

KENYA: Youth Employment and Opportunities project Component 1 includes technical skills training, business support services and Sub-component 2.1 includes business plan competition, and cash prizes.

Organize business plan competitions and entrepreneurship programs for WSMEs

not applicable

P167543

NIGER: Smart Villages for Rural Growth and Digital Inclusion project Sub-component 3.2.3. includes sub-grants of up to US$250,000 through a business competition plan for Fintech companies & startups. Sub-grants cover seed funding, operation costs, costs to pilot new digital financial & nonfinancial solutions for women and farmers.

Organize business plan competitions and entrepreneurship programs for WSMEs

digital investment platform and marketing portal

P146469

SENEGAL: Tourism and Enterprise Development project Component 2 includes trainings on business plan writing, multiple rounds of business plan competitions with cash prizes, and almost US$2m in grants for SMEs through the Senegal Market Access Facility.

Support the development of digital incubators, accelerators, and early- stage funding programs

digital platforms

P161317

KENYA: Industry and Entrepreneurship Project Component 1 includes online platform to connect business incubators, accelerators and technology boot camp providers with global expertise, international networks, and investors.

Support the development of digital incubators, accelerators, and early- stage funding programs

technology innovation hubs, media outlets

P170688

BANGLADESH: Private Investment & Digital Entrepreneurship Project Component 4 includes developing digital entrepreneurship & innovation hubs in technological universities to increase market entry and growth rates of digital startups and create a gender-inclusive culture for digital entrepreneurship.

Support the development of digital incubators, accelerators, and early- stage funding programs

mobile applications

P130891

MONGOLIA: Support for Accountable, Responsible, and Transparent Government project Subcomponent 2.3 includes an Apps competition to provide early-stage financing for development of innovative digital tools by WSMEs that increase the number of female-targeted solutions in government priority sectors.

Support the development of digital incubators, accelerators, and early- stage funding programs

interactive program website, webinars, digital platform

XL Africa

AFRICA: XL Africa business accelerator for SMEs with digital products/services that offers webinars, global mentoring and angel investors platform.

Support the development of digital incubators, accelerators, and early- stage funding programs

crowdfunding digital platform

Kenya Climate Innovation Center (KCIC)

KENYA: Climate Innovation Center project (KCIC -funded by WBG InfoDev) Crowdfund Investing Pilot to help entrepreneurs raise capital.

Leverage apprenticeships and on-the-job learning opportunities

internet-based technical training

P122764

ETHIOPIA: Women Entrepreneurship Development Project (WEDP) Component 2 includes technology training at technical, vocational colleges to enhance classroom learning, provide workshops, product development and on-the-job training.

Leverage apprenticeships and on-the-job learning opportunities

digital and e-commerce platforms

IFC Digital2Equal

MULTI-REGION: IFC Digital2Equal matches women with participating private companies (AirBNB, Uber, Facebook) to learn how their online platforms function, as employee or provider of services or products.