The United Nation’s call for accelerated progress towards investment in women this International Women’s Day highlights an important issue: women entrepreneurs in our region continue to be invisible in the formal economy and financial system. If we are to truly ‘count her in’, the first vital step is for investors to see the potential and value of women entrepreneurs,and the financial sector to provide access to fair and safe loans for eligible people.

Read about this high achieving TV ad campaign developed to reinforce good financial behaviours in Solomon Islands. Featuring local talent in everyday situations, the campaign reached approximately 40% of the Solomon Islands populations during the FIFA World Cup.

We are extremely grateful to have received an important on-the-ground update from Geogina Paongo, Tonga Program Coordinator at Good Return. Geogina has witnessed first hand how financial training, savings and money management skills are essential for women to recover from disasters in the context of disaster recovery and preparedness.

With the closure of garment factories across Cambodia during the pandemic, garment workers have struggled to maintain and protect their livelihoods. Good Return recently trained representatives from the garment workers trade union in our financial literacy curriculum, so that they can then go on and build savings and finance management skills with their members.

If you have ever read an article on community development or microfinance, you will recognise the terms ‘financial capability development’ and ‘financial education’. Often used interchangeably, these terms represent very different concepts.