Who We Are

FinEquity is a global community of over 9,000 researchers, practitioners, policymakers, and donors globally prioritizing women's economic empowerment through financial inclusion. We are currently reaching over 3,000 people across FinEquity ALC (in Spanish) and approximately 2,500 people with FinEquity Africa (in English). Convened by CGAP, FinEquity envisions a world where women have the capabilities to access, negotiate and control financial services that improve their lives. Goals and strategies are guided by FinEquity participant’s needs.

Our Vision

A world where women have the capabilities to access, negotiate, and control financial services that improve their lives.

Our Mission

To accelerate women's economic empowerment through financial inclusion by catalyzing knowledge generation, fostering best practices and encouraging sector collaboration.

Our Values

Collaboration, Inclusion, Effectiveness, Accountability.

Engaging with FinEquity - What Does it Mean?

By signing up for the FinEquity mailing list you are considered a participant of FinEquity’s vibrant Community of Practice. FinEquity is an open and inclusive community and we’re always happy to add new participants. Engaging with FinEquity provides a variety of channels and facilitated platforms for participants to share experiences, identify key challenges, discuss new ideas, document emerging good practices and solve common problems associated with increasing equitable access to and use of a broad range of financial services. 

Connect:

FinEquity Annual Convenings are a terrific opportunity to connect with like-minded individuals in the global women's financial inclusion sector, as we engage in productive and inspiring conversations. The Annual Convening includes a combination of panels, group discussions and member share sessions arranged to showcase solutions and ongoing efforts to accelerate women's economic empowerment through financial inclusion.

FinEquity Socials are informal gatherings hosted by our community around the globe. Often held on the sidelines of regional events, they are an ideal way to meet local peers and increase awareness of FinEquity issues at a grassroots level. For further information about hosting a FinEquity Social contact FinEquity@cgap.org

FinEquityALC: This Spanish-language discussion forum is intended to broaden engagement and exchange on women’s financial inclusion across the Latin American and Caribbean region. The FinEquityALC community has its own Dgroups and FinDev Gateway Web Pages. 

FinEquity Africa: This regional branch of FinEquity aims to accelerate knowledge generation, foster best practices, and encourage sector collaboration for women's financial inclusion across the Africa region. For more information visit the FinEquity Africa Page. 

FinEquity LinkedIn Group: The FinEquity LinkedIn Group is particularly suited for those seeking to grow their professional networks, develop new partnerships and share materials of interest.

Member Spotlights: Spotlights promote greater exchange and collaboration across the FinEquity community by showcasing the work of a cross-section of FinEquity participants. Member Spotlights are often included in the Newsletter and always shared on the FinEquity Blog.

Share:

FinEquity Newsletter: Visit our Newsletter Archive, and subscribe to receive the FinEquity monthly Newsletter in your email inbox. Catch up on summaries of important FinEquity discussions, stay informed through our curated reading list, view recent webinars, read Peer Review summaries, share your news, and stay abreast of upcoming events, webinars, RFPs and publications.

Dgroups: The easiest, most immediate way to connect with the FinEquity community. The FinEquity Dgroups list-serve allows you to participate in discussions, promote events and webinars, ask questions, connect with peers and share updates. Our Dgroups Information Sheet has all of the information you'll need to sign-up, set email preferences, join discussions and start your own conversations. Sign-up to join the FinEquity Dgroups.

X formerly Twitter: For recent developments from the broader FinEquity community and timely announcements from our team, follow us on Twitter at @FinEquityGlobal. FinEquity participants are welcome to send social media kits for retweeting to FinEquity@cgap.org

Learn:

Webinars: Engage with peers and learn about innovative new research, practices and helpful tools. These webinars cover a wide range of issues relevant to our community and are facilitated by FinEquity Thematic Leads. Recordings are made available on our Events Page and often include recommended reading and follow-ups to Q&A.

Peer Reviews: A valuable opportunity for FinEquity participants to receive input from a specially selected group of experts regarding new research, publications or other knowledge products they are producing. Facilitated by a member of the FinEquity team, Peer Reviews can be in-person, virtual or one-to-one consultations. For information on how to request a FinEquity Peer Review for your work program contact us at FinEquity@cgap.org

Resources: Find reports, conceptual models, case studies, policy briefs, Peer Reviews and a host of other specially curated materials to support your work on our Resources Page. By gathering our community’s most relevant resources, FinEquity supports collaborative learning and continued exchange of information, while reducing institutional learning curves and duplication of efforts. 

#DGroupsDialogues: Those interested in drawing upon the collective expertise of the FinEquity community for their work, are invited to host a #DGroupsDialogues held on our Dgroups channel within a designated period of time on topics ranging from research issues to implementation challenges and questions sparked by new publications. #DgroupsDialogues are produced together with a FinEquity Thematic Lead. For more information see our How-To Use #DGroupsDialogues graphic.

Influence:

FinEquity Blog: A carefully curated selection of views and news from a cross-section of experts, funders and practitioners shaping the conversation around women’s financial inclusion globally. See our Blogging Guidelines for information on how you might contribute to the FinEquity Blog, we are particularly interested in publishing original content and hearing from new voices. 

Learning Themes: Interested in engaging more deeply on key thematic issues? FinEquity's learning agenda is organized around several learning themes. Learn more about specific activities and engagement opportunities within each theme: Climate and Gender, WEE Measurement, and Gender-Lens Investing for Women-led MSMEs. Previous themes included: Gender-Transformative Solutions, Digitally-Enabled Financial Inclusion, and Impact Pathways.

 

Meet the FinEquity team:

Photo courtesy of Aude de Montesquiou

Aude de Montesquiou

FinEquity Community of Practice Facilitator at CGAP

Aude de Montesquiou is the FinEquity Community of Practice Facilitator at CGAP. She has close to 20 years of experience in poverty reduction, and has published widely on social protection, livelihoods and financial inclusion. Previously, Aude was the Special Advisor at the BRAC Institute of Governance and Development and a social protection specialist in the World Bank’s Social Protection and Jobs Global Practice.

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Antonique Koning

Antonique Koning

CGAP Senior Financial Sector Specialist

Antonique Koning leads CGAP’s work on Women’s Economic Empowerment through financial inclusion. She has more than 25 years of experience working on inclusive finance and has expertise in gender norms affecting women’s financial inclusion and empowerment, young women’s financial inclusion, responsible finance and customer centricity.

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Image of a woman

Jenny Morgan

WEE Measurement Thematic Lead

Jenny Morgan is FinEquity's IWEE Measurement Thematic Lead. She has over 15 years of experience in inclusive financial growth, entrepreneurship and small business development, women’s economic empowerment, and resilience.

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Headshot image of Swati Mehta

Swati Mehta

Financial Abuse Thematic Lead

Swati is FinEquity's Financial Abuse Thematic Lead. Swati is a development researcher with 15 years of experience advising businesses, international development organizations, and governments on achieving inclusive development, particularly through digital pathways. She has worked on various aspects of financial inclusion, with expertise in women's economic empowerment, humanitarian response, and climate change adaptation. She has worked extensively across developing market economies in Asia and Africa.

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Mariana Martínez

Mariana Martínez

Regional Lead

Mariana Martínez is FinEquity's Regional Lead. She is an economist with over 15 years of experience in financial inclusion, microfinance, and economic development in Latin America and the Caribbean; with a focus on women’s economic empowerment and inclusion. Prior to joining GCAP in 2013, she consulted for international organizations, NGOs, MFIs, and governments in LAC. 

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Headshot image of Tariro Nyimo.

Tariro Nyimo

FinEquity Africa Facilitator

Tariro is FinEquity Africa's Regional Facilitator. She is passionate about programs and partnerships related to sustainable development goals, emphasizing gender equality, inclusive finance and inclusive digital economies. She is a thought leader in the area of women’s financial inclusion, digital gender divide and women’s economic empowerment. Tariro is based in South Africa. 

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Chido Myambo

Chido Myambo

FinEquity Communications Specialist

Chido Myambo is a communications specialist with over 10 years experience working in the non-profit and international development space. She has worked on several projects including being the Community Engagement Manager for Social Enterprise Connect, which is a community of practice for South African social entrepreneurs, convened by Social Enterprise Academy.

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FinEquity Technical Advisory Committee

Shameran Abed

Shameran Abed

Senior Director of BRAC's Microfinance

Shameran Abed is Senior Director of BRAC's Microfinance and Ultra-Poor Graduation programmes. BRAC’s microfinance programme serves more than 8 million clients in seven countries in Asia and Africa, with total assets exceeding USD 3.5 billion.

Nandini Harihareswara

Nandini Harihareswara

Independent Consultant

Nandini Harihareswara is an independent consultant specializing in FinTech, Digital Finance and Payments. She formerly worked as the Senior Advisor & Lead Focal Point on Gender Equality for UNCDF’s IDE division, and as the UNCDF Digital Finance Regional Technical Specialist in Zambia and Malawi.

Audrey Hove

Audrey Hove

Senior Policy Manager, Gender Inclusive Finance, AFI

Audrey leads the Gender Inclusive Finance (GIF) workstream at the Alliance for Financial Inclusion (AFI), the world’s leading organization on financial inclusion policy and regulation with 86 members (central banks and financial sector regulatory institutions) in 82 countries.

Mary Ellen Iskenderian

Mary Ellen Iskenderian

President and CEO of Women’s World Banking

Mary Ellen Iskenderian is President and CEO of Women’s World Banking, the global nonprofit devoted to giving low-income women in the developing world access to the financial tools and resources they require to achieve security and prosperity.

Jean Bosco Iyacu.

Jean Bosco Iyacu

Chief Executive Officer, Access to Finance Rwanda (AFR)

Jean Bosco Iyacu is the Chief Executive Officer of Access to Finance Rwanda (AFR), a non-profit focused on promoting financial sector development and facilitating access to and use of financial services for unserved and underserved segments in Rwanda. He has over 17 years experience working in the Rwandan financial sector.

Antonique Koning

Antonique Koning

CGAP Senior Financial Sector Specialist

Antonique Koning leads CGAP’s work on Women’s Economic Empowerment through financial inclusion. She has more than 25 years of experience working on inclusive finance and has expertise in gender norms affecting women’s financial inclusion and empowerment, young women’s financial inclusion, responsible finance and customer centricity.

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Joanna Ledgerwood

Joanna Ledgerwood

Independent Consultant

Joanna Ledgerwood joined CGAP in 2020 as part of CGAP’s gender team focusing on social norms affecting women’s financial inclusion and gender transformative solutions.

Christian Pennotti

Christian Pennotti

Managing Director, Women in the Digital Economy Fund (WiDEF), at CARE

Christian Pennotti is the Managing Director for the Women in the Digital Economy Fund (WiDEF), a $60M initiative committed to meaningfully closing the gender digital divide.

Carolina Trivelli

Carolina Trivelli

Senior Strategic Analysis Advisor at FAO Regional Office for Latin America and the Caribbean

Carolina Trivelli is an economist working on rural finance, and financial inclusion in Peru.

Jamie M. Zimmerman

Jamie M. Zimmerman

Deputy Director, Digital Connectivity at the Bill & Melinda Gates Foundation

Jamie M. Zimmerman leads the Bill & Melinda Gates Foundation’s work to increase low-income women’s economic empowerment through access to and usage of digital financial services.