By Halimah Olamide
Stakeholders at the Wole Soyinka Center for Investigative Journalism (WSCIJ) have identified financial literacy as one of the key tools in easing financial accessibility for women.
Speaking at the 8th day of the Wole Soyinka Center’s 16-Day Activism Against Gender-Based Violence on X space (Formerly Twitter) on Saturday, were panelists including Hon. Toki Mabogunje, Hon Consul of the United Republic of Tanzania to Lagos State, Mr. Simon Ogwu, COO, AG Mortgage Bank, Stella Adebayo, Team Lead Bizgrant Global and Mr. Lolade Akinmurele, Deputy Editor, Business Day.
The online event which was themed: “How Easy it is for Female Entrepreneurs to Access Financial Facilities”, was moderated by Blessing Oladunjoye, Publisher, BO News.
In her opening remark, Hon Mabogunje highlighted that the low-income levels of many women make them believe they cannot qualify for a loan and harped on the need to get enlightened.
She also stated that the level of low education amongst women boosts the chance of low financial literacy, especially with small businesses.
“Because women have these low-income levels, they do have the belief that they will not qualify for a loan even if they try. There’s the issue of low education among women so there’s a high chance of low financial literacy, particularly with micro and small businesses.
“There’s also an issue of low trust level with financial institutions, women don’t generally trust our financial institutions to do the best things possible for their business and despite this, women have a reputation worldwide of being the best borrowers because they pay back their monies.”
“A lot of advocacy has been done but it takes years, it’s a hard long road and it takes constant struggle
“Understanding record keeping is important, knowing the structure of your business.
Mr. Simon Ogwu, noted that most modern women do not often like to take financial obligations in terms of taking a mortgage facility.
However, he has stressed the need to advocate for financial literacy to aid and improve the financial activities of women.
Meanwhile, Stella Adebayo, in her remark, established that women should open themselves to learning to enable them to be well-equipped with the right information to have access to funds and resources for their businesses.
“More women have been able to have access to grants, based on the years, more women have been getting grants than men. A lot of organizations support women more with grants now.
“However, women who want to access funds and resources need to open themselves up to learning.
She further urged women to also join communities of like-minds, attend more training, and keep shyness away.