The Central Bank of Egypt (CBE) announced on Wednesday that the financial inclusion rate for women has surged by 295 per cent, reaching 68.8 per cent by the end of December 2024, up from just 17.4 per cent in 2016. This significant leap reflects a broadening access to financial services for women, marking a milestone in the country's efforts to empower women economically, the CBE stated. As of December 2024, approximately 23.3 million women, out of a total of 33.9 million women aged 15 and above, now have access to financial services and transaction accounts. This achievement was celebrated during the launch of the Women Financial Inclusion Event, which the CBE first introduced in 2019 to support women's access to banking products and services. The event, which forms part of the CBE's broader Financial Inclusion Strategy 2022-2025, has already led to the introduction of nearly 1.4 million financial products tailored for women by March 2024. These products include 664,000 bank accounts, 196,000 e-wallets, and 530,000 prepaid cards, all designed to meet the unique financial needs of women across Egypt. The growth in financial inclusion is largely attributed to a series of regulatory changes and financial initiatives introduced by the CBE in collaboration with other ministries, relevant authorities, and international organisations. These initiatives have fostered a legal and regulatory environment conducive to increasing women's access to banking services. Notably, recent regulations have simplified the account-opening process by allowing women to open accounts using only their National ID, a move that has particularly benefited housewives, micro-entrepreneurs, and craftspeople, as well as divorced and widowed mothers. Women are at the forefront of the CBE's Financial Inclusion Strategy 2022-2025. The strategy is founded on several pillars, including the development of women-supportive legal and regulatory environment, the launch of stimulating initiatives and projects in collaboration with ministries, relevant authorities, and international institutions, as well as guiding banks to offer financial products that meet women's needs. In addition to regulatory reforms, financial literacy campaigns have played a central role in increasing women's financial knowledge, enabling them to make informed decisions about saving, investing, and borrowing. These initiatives have reached millions of women, with the CBE working closely with international organisations like the OECD and Women's World Banking to train bank employees on how to better understand and serve the financial needs of women. Fintech innovations have also contributed to this success, particularly in rural areas where access to traditional banking services has been limited. Through projects like Tahwisha, an initiative sponsored by the CBE, women in Egypt's rural areas are encouraged to save and apply for micro-loans to launch small businesses. As of December 2024, approximately 246,400 women had registered on the Tahwisha electronic application, benefiting from both savings and loan opportunities. Furthermore, the CBE is advancing digital financial inclusion through projects such as the Digitisation of International Remittances Project, which facilitates the provision of banking products to Egyptian women working abroad. Of the 1.5 million remittance recipients, women make up about 85 per cent of the beneficiaries. The CBE is also partnering with the United States Agency for International Development (USAID) on the Women's Economic and Social Empowerment Program (WESEP), designed to further promote women's financial autonomy. The CBE's ongoing efforts underscore the importance of financial inclusion in advancing gender equality and providing women with the tools they need for economic independence. Attribution: Amwal Al Ghad English
