UNCDF is working in Myanmar with the goal to improve women (aged 25+) and girls’ (aged between 10-24) awareness of, access to, use of and control over appropriate financial products and services responsibly provided by diverse and sustainable service providers in a well-regulated environment. Further, to strengthen the enabling environment and the socio-cultural context for greater access and agency for women and girls. This is intended to contribute to more inclusive financial markets that drive women’s and girls' economic empowerment and participation in the country.
To deliver on this vision, UNCDF will be working directly and through partners to address financial inclusion supply-side, demand-side and enabling environment constraints and enablers, and cross cutting socio-cultural context, adapted to women’s life cycle needs and economic roles.
UNCDF is operationalising its global strategy on women’s economic participation and empowerment at country level in Myanmar through implementing strategic interventions to deliver on three country-level objectives:
Women and girls in Myanmar face barriers in the supply of and in their demand for financial products and services, the wider enabling environment as well as in their socio-cultural context.
On the supply side, access points across delivery channels are extremely limited in Myanmar and agent banking and mobile money agents are nascent. Further, a lack of formal and liquid saving mechanisms, coupled with a lack of access to formal loans, force women to turn to informal lenders to meet household expenses and emergencies.
In terms of the enabling environment, regulatory requirements to secure loans at retail banks are the key constraint for women business owners looking for larger ticket loans, as banks require >200% collateral in land & building which women are less likely to own. This is in a context where women face lower levels of land and property ownership driven by inheritance norms as well as discrimination in the registration process. For instance, until recently, the farmland registration process included space for only one name – generally the head of the household.
Banks require >200% collateral
for larger ticket loans
Constraints such as these, collectively limit women’s access, usage and agency over financial products and services in ways that constrain their economic empowerment. Consequently, women remain disproportionately excluded from the formal financial system, with a gender gap of 4% points, with 29% of females accessing finance through either formal banks or non-banks compared to 33% of males, and more likely to use informal products compared with men by 5% points.
