Banks applauded for uplifting women.
Banks applauded for uplifting women.
Local banks have been applauded for uplifting women in their daily endeavors in small communities and the nation at large.
Many local women who are into small to medium businesses have applauded the local banks for giving them assistance in propelling their dreams through financial assistance, advice, training, and business loans so that they can be independent women who earn a decent living and are self-reliant.
The director of the Women’s Coalition said their association plays a pivotal role in promoting women and their livelihoods representation socially, politically, and economically.
The director went on to acknowledge the government’s efforts to uplift women as they have incorporated them in the Vision 2030 dream of making the country an upper medium income country by 2030; henceforth, women have been encouraged to start their own businesses and projects in line with the fore-mentioned vision.
The organization mostly works with women in empowerment programs, encouraging them to apply for loans and also to hear from the Ministry of Women Affairs, Community, and Small and Medium Enterprises as their stakeholder.
It is very much invested in trying to assist the women to be emancipated and empowered and also to take part in leadership positions where they influence the day-to-day activities that benefit them in their lives, families, constituencies, and communities.
Nozilo Mpilo from the Women’s Coalition, Eru Chapter, said a lot of women are informal traders, and women constitute 65 percent of informal traders across the country. WCOZ is working towards improving the lives of women.
“Not only in terms of their livelihoods but also in terms of their knowledge of constitutionalism on how to advocate for their rights and how to make sure that they fend for their families on economic empowerment issues”, said Mpilo.
WC is assisting women to ensure that they are included in everything that affects their lives. For example, during the budget consultations, women should be visible and voice the needs that they have so that their submissions will be considered and infused within the budget.
“So, the budget is gender-sensitive, and as Women Coalition (WC), we support women, and at the same time as the economy is dwindling, women now play the role of supporting the household or breadwinners, so there is a need for us to support them on this journey towards improving their livelihood”, explained Mpilo.
Mpilo then acknowledges local banks that have entrusted their dreams to women and are offering assistance in so many ways.
A close associate of Miss Mpilo said we have moved from a patriarchal society where the men were supposed to fend for the women; now it is time for both men and women to jointly provide for their families so as to achieve the upper middle class by 2030.
Joining forces by empowering and including the other gender is the way to go. The housewife mantra should be a thing of the past. Women should contribute to the economy, starting small and then expanding depending on the business ventures there.
A sociology professor, Brighton Hrema, said that financial problems trigger most domestic violence cases, so promoting self-reliance and empowering women will indirectly deal with the domestic violence chapter.
Recently, we have seen local banks offering start-up loans for women aspiring to start small to medium businesses and partnering with other stakeholders to provide business training and project management skills.
Local banks like CBZ, Cabs, NMB, and Capital Bank are more vibrant in this program, while other stakeholders like Irvines, Farm and City, and National Foods are supplying stockfeed and training for livestock projects.
