Women’s Bank ‘needs more resources’

The Zimbabwe Women’s Microfinance Bank needs more resources so it can help more women set up businesses and so discharge its mandate of uplifting women, Women Affairs, Community, Small and Medium Enterprises Development Minister Monica Mutsvangwa has said.

Delivering a lecture titled, “The participation of women economic development: A case of Zimbabwe”, at the Zimbabwe National Defence University, Minister Mutsvangwa emphasised the pivotal role of women in economic development.

Empowerment of underprivileged women, she noted, was critical in achieving the key targets of Vision 2030, when Zimbabwe is expected to have attained upper middle-income society status.

Against this background, she underscored the urgent need for increased financial support to capacitate the women’s bank.

“The progress made by our ministry, supported by the Treasury, is commendable. Yet, the current outreach of the Women’s Microfinance Bank remains limited, serving only around 300 individuals annually nationwide,” Minister Mutsvangwa said.

“This is insufficient considering the vast potential among women entrepreneurs.”

The drive towards economic empowerment hinges crucially upon equitable access to capital, with women among the most financial excluded demographic.

Empowering women is crucial because it leads to significant societal benefits like economic growth, poverty reduction, improved health outcomes for families, increased gender equality, and a more equitable distribution of power.

This allows the women to fully contribute to their communities and societies without facing systemic barriers; essentially, it benefits not only the women but also the wider world around them.

The Zimbabwe Women’s Microfinance Bank, if fully capitalised, holds significant potential to revolutionise the country’s economy, elevating livelihoods, and reducing dependency and poverty.

By fostering a financially inclusive environment where women can access financial resources with less difficulty, the ripple effects promise to be potentially transformative.

Recognising this need, the Government has made significant financial commitments in the 2025 National Budget to empower women, the youth and small businesses.

Finance, Economic Development, and Investment Promotion, Professor Mthuli Ncube, in November last year, allocated ZiG1,02 billion to the Ministry of Women Affairs, Community, Small and Medium Enterprises to facilitate empowerment programmes across the country, key among the targets being women and marginalised groups.-herald