Women are real catalysts in a country’s progress, because of their particular focus on the family, on which they spend their available resources, improving their standards of education, nutrition and health, which contributes to the development of human capital, sustainable and inclusive growth and, finally, to poverty reduction.
In Latin America and the Caribbean, despite the distance covered in the last few decades, huge economic and poverty gaps remain that become wider with greater vulnerability. Labor opportunities are scarce in the region and the extensive time that women spend on unpaid work limits their options for generating income. This leads to situations in which many of them depend financially on a third party, work in the informal economy or decide to start a small, self-employed business for which financial inclusion is critical. Nevertheless, according to Findex 2014, 52% of women in the region do not have a bank account. This greater financial restriction means that their possibilities to expand their businesses and make progress are limited.
BBVAMF is aware of this reality so, in alignment with its mission, it pays special attention to women entrepreneurs. Driving their financial independence has been, and continues to be, a very important function of all the institutions in the BBVAMF Group.
The Foundation seeks to position itself as an agent of change that facilitates women’s economic empowerment through financial inclusion, one of the targets within the United Nations' SDG №5, Gender Equality. To work towards this, BBVAMF makes it easier for women to access financial products and services that are adapted to their needs, which it supports with financial education, technical training and access to networks.
BBVA Microfinance Foundation offers opportunities to more than 1,200,000 women in five Latin American countries. More information here: http://bit.ly/2s0jiMP
The information was originally posted on: http://www.fundacionmicrofinanzasbbva.org/en/sector-development/women-empowerment/
Photo credit: UNDP Mexico
DISCLAIMER:
The views expressed in this blog and video are the author's own and do not necessarily reflect those of the SDG Philanthropy Platform. The SDG Philanthropy Platform is a global initiative that connects philanthropy with knowledge and networks that can deepen collaboration, leverage resources and sustain impact, driving SDG delivery within national development planning. It is led by the United Nations Development Programme (UNDP) and Rockefeller Philanthropy Advisors (RPA), and supported by the Conrad N. Hilton Foundation, Ford Foundation, Oak Foundation, Brach Family Charitable Foundation, and many others.