E-Financial
Importance of Financing Women-Owned MSMEs in Global Supply Chain
By Omokehinde Adebanjo
There is significant evidence that women are the glue that hold their families, communities and even local economies together all over the world.
What I find enlightening is that this impact is particularly keenly felt in emerging economies such as those in Africa, where women are drivers of growth and widespread financial inclusion – which has been a key message coming out at the Women’s World Banking Making Finance Work for Women conference here in Dar Es Salaam.
In fact, we have done research into this trend through our Mastercard Index of Women’s Entrepreneurship (MIWE) and found that female entrepreneurs in developing countries are driven by resilience, determination and the desire to provide for their families.
Although the research was focused on only select markets initially, we learnt that women in these markets typically tap into local business opportunities that are not dependent on knowledge or innovation alone, effectively allowing them to avoid substantial financial, regulatory or technical constraints.
According to the index East Africa, specifically, shines in this area: the Index showed that Uganda has the highest percentage of female business owners in any of the 54 countries surveyed worldwide, with 34.8 percent of businesses in the country owned by women.
What’s more, Uganda’s women boast a 100 percent entrepreneurial activity rate, 93.9 percent labour participation rate and 90.5 percent borrowing or saving rate for the purposes of opening a business.
Uganda’s neighbour, Tanzania – where many of us are currently gathered for the Making Finance Work for Women Summit – is also making notable strides in this area, with dedicated programmes like the UN Joint Programme on Youth Employment helping many of the country’s young women entrepreneurs hone their own skills and capabilities as well as generate employment opportunities for other young people.
Likewise, the Kenyan Government has made provision for 33 percent of Government jobs and procurement opportunities to be accessed by women.
If we look at Nigeria, we also notice a high percentage of female entrepreneurship, with as many as 41 percent of the country’s women acting as entrepreneurs.
This is notably higher than many developed countries like the USA where only 10 percent of women are entrepreneurs and France where a tiny three percent of women are entrepreneurs.
These examples serve to illustrate the sheer value of women entrepreneurs, and why it is critical to finance women-owned businesses and micro, small or medium-sized enterprises (MSMEs) in supply chains – and in Africa, in particular – in order to truly be able to generate the economic growth that is necessary at local, national and global levels.
Collective Action Required To Support Women Entrepreneurs
Only through collective action can we hope to help bring vital cogs of development into formalised business processes as well as strengthen the overall ecosystem of vibrant and resilient women entrepreneurs.
This has been a key focus area for us at Mastercard for many years now, not only at a global level but across the African continent, which we recognise as a breeding ground for smart and innovative female entrepreneurs.
In this vein, we have partnered and collaborated with organisations from across the spectrum of the public and private sectors to broadly empower the continent’s women and provide them with the knowledge and tools necessary to start and sustainably grow their own businesses.
That included joining forces with African Women and Beyond (AWAB) in Kenya to launch the Africa Women Leadership Network (AWLN) last year to bring together like-minded women from various business sectors to tackle challenges facing women in East Africa, and more broadly across the continent.
In Nigeria, which is also a key growth market, we are starting to focus more on women empowerment. This includes our partnership with Mercy Corps to provide 2,500 girls with access to financial tools and entrepreneurship training.
Last year, together with UN Women, we signed a Memorandum of Understanding to bring more women into the formal financial fold and empower them through financial literacy training.
More than just enabling the country’s women to participate in formal financial activities through identity documents, we additionally partnered with the Youth for Technology Foundation to provide women entrepreneurs with the support and training they require to start and continue running their businesses.
Through the experience gained in the course of much of this work, we have noticed and learnt the importance of digitising operations and processes as a way of supporting women entrepreneurs. Practical examples of where we have introduced digital solutions that have considerably assisted women business owners of Micro, Small and Medium enterprises include Masterpass QR and 2KUZE.
Masterpass QR is our person-to-merchant, mobile-driven payment ecosystem that is in the process of being rolled out in 33 markets across Africa.
It addresses challenges with the acceptance of electronic payments for MSMEs without the need for expensive point-of-sale (POS) infrastructure. These women merchants can effectively accept fast and secure payments for their goods through their smart or feature phones.
The 2KUZE solution was introduced specifically to streamline the value chain for farmers in Kenya and Tanzania, where agriculture is the economic backbone.
It connects farmers, buyers and agents through both feature and smartphones and facilitates the entire transaction, removing the need for the country’s farmers to walk long distances to sell their produce at markets. As women play a critical role in the agricultural sector in these countries, it is a solution that has assisted them in running their businesses more efficiently.
Ultimately, what we can see is that when women are empowered through entrepreneurship and technology, they are able to make significant contributions to their economies. This makes it critical for us across industries and both the public and private sectors to band together and continue providing the financial and non-financial support these inspirational women require.
World Bank has said that it has given approval of $300 million to fund a new project aimed at bolstering access to services and economic opportunities for internally displaced persons (IDPs) and their host communities in northern Nigeria.
In a release, the World Bank said the Solutions for the Internally Displaced and Host Communities Project (SOLID) was approved on August 7.
It stated that the project will adopt an integrated development strategy to help displaced persons and host communities transition from humanitarian aid to self-reliance and resilience.
It also said the ongoing conflict and insecurity in the region have displaced more than 3.5 million people, straining infrastructure and deepening competition for scarce resources in affected communities.
The bank said SOLID will build on previous government and partner interventions, including the multi-sectoral crisis recovery project (MCRP), which focused on emergency recovery.
“Key areas of focus include building climate-resilient infrastructure, promoting social cohesion, supporting livelihoods, and strengthening institutions to better respond to the pressures of forced displacement.
“We are glad to support this initiative which has a tremendous potential to help Nigeria in addressing development challenges associated with protracted displacement in a sustainable way,” Mathew Verghis, World Bank country director for Nigeria, said.
“The Project’s integrated approach which is aligned with the National IDP Policy and the FGN’s long-term development vision will ensure that IDPs and host communities can transition from dependency on humanitarian assistance to self-reliance and resilience which will open up better economic opportunities,” it added.
The World Bank, which noted that the cproject is expected to benefit up to 7.4 million people, of whom up to 1.3 million individuals are identified as IDPs, added that the project will be implemented through a coordinated, community-driven approach involving all tiers of government, with strong partnerships from international stakeholders.
United Bank for Africa (UBA), Plc, Africa’s Global Bank, has launched its revamped Group website to enhance users’ digital experience.
The newly revamped website boasts of a faster, smarter, and more dynamic digital platform, designed to deliver live news updates, real-time Nigerian stock prices, and a world-class user experience among other world-class features.
The upgrade marks a significant leap in the bank’s digital transformation journey, setting new standards for speed, accessibility, and innovation in the African banking industry.
Alero Ladipo, group head, Marketing and Corporate Communication, UBA, who spoke excitedly about the revamped website, explained that the redesign focuses on simplifying user-journey, improving responsiveness across all devices, and incorporating a language-agnostic interface that caters to the bank’s diverse global audience.
She explained that with its sleek, intuitive layout and enhanced navigation, the site empowers customers, investors, and stakeholders to access critical information instantly – whether it is the latest market movements, breaking financial news, or UBA’s wide range of products and services.
Ms Ladipo said, “We are thrilled to unveil our new website, which represents a significant milestone in our digital transformation journey. Our goal is to provide a world-class digital experience that meets the evolving needs of our customers and stakeholders.”
Continuing, she added, “A major highlight of the upgrade is its speed, powered by an upgraded server infrastructure with enhanced load balancing to ensure minimal downtime and lightning-fast performance. By combining speed, accessibility, and live market intelligence, our new platform strengthens our position as an industry leader.”
She pointed out that the site also integrates automated news updates powered by International agency, Bloomberg and real-time stock prices tracking, ensuring visitors remain informed at all times.
Throwing more light on the new features, Amanda Oguamanam, head, Digital and Online Marketing, UBA, said; “We have transformed our website to be faster, cleaner, and more engaging, removing clutter by over 60%, upgrading servers for speed and reliability, streamlining navigation, and tailoring content to inspire global partners while making it easier for customers to find what they need.”
Other standout features, she added, include improved accessibility for users with disabilities, dark/light mode toggle, advanced search functions, and a simplified content structure, which are all designed to deliver an inclusive, modern experience for a global audience.
The revamped website is live and accessible at www.ubagroup.com.
United Bank for Africa is one of the largest employers in the financial sector on the African continent, with 25,000 employees group wide and serving over 45 million customers globally.
Operating in twenty African countries and the United Kingdom, the United States of America, France and the United Arab Emirates, UBA provides retail, commercial and institutional banking services, leading financial inclusion and implementing cutting-edge technology.
Nigeria’s Value Added Tax (VAT) revenue surged to ₦6.72 trillion in 2024, marking an 84.6% increase from ₦3.64 trillion in 2023, according to the National Bureau of Statistics (NBS). This sharp rise reflects stronger economic activity and improved tax collection efforts across key sectors.
VAT revenue showed consistent growth throughout the year. In Q1 2024, collections stood at ₦1.43 trillion. This rose to ₦1.56 trillion in Q2, representing a 9.09% increase. Q3 recorded ₦1.78 trillion, up 14% from the previous quarter, while Q4 peaked at ₦1.95 trillion, a 9.5% rise from Q3.
In Q4 alone, VAT collections totaled ₦1.95 trillion, with domestic VAT payments contributing ₦917.40 billion, non-import foreign VAT at ₦554.68 billion, and import VAT at ₦474.75 billion. Domestic VAT remained the largest source, indicating strong local business activity and consumer spending.
Several sectors posted significant quarter-on-quarter growth in Q4. Extraterritorial organisations and bodies saw a dramatic rise of 180.05%, followed by agriculture, forestry and fishing at 70.83%, and human health and social work at 46.13%. These gains suggest increased operational scope, improved compliance, and possibly targeted government incentives.
However, not all sectors fared well. Households as employers and self-use production contracted by 28.97%, while the information and communication sector declined by 23%. The drop in ICT may reflect shifting market dynamics or regulatory headwinds affecting digital services.
Overall, the surge in VAT revenue signals a positive fiscal outlook for Nigeria, with implications for budgetary planning, infrastructure investment, and social services funding. It also highlights the importance of sector-specific monitoring to sustain momentum and address emerging challenges.
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