Report of the FSD Network Conference

The report details the outcomes of the FSD Network Conference held in Nairobi, Kenya, in February 2025. It examines the impact of gender-responsive financial systems, the use of alternative credit scoring, the influence of societal gender norms on financial autonomy, and the role of digital public infrastructure and AI in bridging the gender gap in financial services across Africa.

• Gender norms significantly restrict women's financial autonomy in several African countries. In Uganda, research identified a prevalent norm that "Women should not have financial privacy from their husbands or male household members," while in Zambia, women were traditionally prohibited from raising goats, and in Rwanda, societal expectations often place men in charge of financial decisions.
• Alternative credit scoring models using non-traditional data—such as mobile wallet transactions, climate data, and crop production records—are being tested to reduce financial exclusion for women in Tanzania and Rwanda. In Tanzania, women make up 55% of the financially excluded population, and these models aim to bypass barriers like the lack of national identification and collateral.
• Innovative health financing models are improving maternal health outcomes. Uganda's ClinicPesa project uses a "medical mobile bank" to enable low-income women to save and access loans for medical expenses, while Kenya's Lea Mama initiative employs a value-based care (VBC) approach that prioritises health outcomes over fee-for-service models to reduce costs and improve the quality of care.
• Women in agriculture face systemic invisibility in financial systems and are often excluded by male gatekeepers. However, evidence shows that when provided with financing, women demonstrate a higher repayment rate than men, particularly when they possess collateral.
• Digital Public Infrastructure (DPI) and AI present both opportunities and risks for women's financial inclusion. While AI can improve efficiency and lower investment costs, there are significant concerns regarding "algorithm bias, digital literacy, and data privacy." In Uganda, despite 27 million people transitioning to digital ID systems, high printing costs and bureaucratic steps remain barriers.
• There is a critical need for gender-disaggregated financial data to inform inclusive policymaking. In Rwanda, the National Bank of Rwanda (NBR) has worked to address gaps in data collection and governance, while in Tanzania, the Bank of Tanzania issued guidance for financial institutions to track gender gaps in credit and savings.

APA

FSD Africa (2025). Report of the FSD Network Conference. https://fsdafrica.org/wp-content/uploads/2025/05/2025-FSD-Network-Conference-learnings.pdf

Chicago

FSD Africa. Report of the FSD Network Conference. 2025. https://fsdafrica.org/wp-content/uploads/2025/05/2025-FSD-Network-Conference-learnings.pdf.

Wikipedia

{{cite report |author=FSD Africa |title=Report of the FSD Network Conference |date=2025 |url=https://fsdafrica.org/wp-content/uploads/2025/05/2025-FSD-Network-Conference-learnings.pdf |access-date=17 August 2026 |via=Climate Insights Directory}}

BibTeX

@techreport{fsdafrica2025report, author = {{FSD Africa}}, title = {{Report of the FSD Network Conference}}, institution = {FSD Africa}, year = {2025}, url = {https://fsdafrica.org/wp-content/uploads/2025/05/2025-FSD-Network-Conference-learnings.pdf}, urldate = {2026-08-17}, note = {Indexed by Climate Insights Directory} }