By Sibahle Magadla
Labour economist Sibahle Magadla works to promote financial inclusion, youth employment and gender equity. She has worked across Africa, contributing research and policy to the International Finance Corporation, the International Labour Organisation, the United Nations Development Programme and the South African government. A Chevening Scholar with two Master’s degrees, Magadla is a member of the International Association for Feminist Economics.
Magadla says: “Financial inclusion must go beyond access to bank accounts and digital wallets – it must enable economic agency. G20 finance ministers should prioritise inclusive financial systems that facilitate entrepreneurship, promote savings and investment, protect against debt traps, and build the financial capabilities of excluded populations, especially women, youth, informal workers and displaced persons. A huge remedy here is having more female fund managers.
“Research has shown that women are more likely to apply for funding/loans to scale up their business if they know that the fund manager/financing institution is women-led. They feel more confident to pitch, negotiate and ask the right questions.”
To make financial inclusion meaningful, Magadla says G20 ministers must:
Incentivise gender-responsive financial innovations.
Support youth-led and women-led enterprises with concessional financing.
Promote ecosystems for women entrepreneurs to thrive.
Protect consumers from exploitative lending practices and algorithmic bias in fintech.
