As the world marked the 30th anniversary of the Beijing Declaration, the 2025 International Women’s Day theme “For ALL women and girls: Rights. Equality. Empowerment.” called for renewed commitment to eliminate barriers and expand opportunities for women and girls everywhere.
In this context, Ecobank Foundation and UN Women convened the webinar “Your Money, Your Power: Financial Freedom for African Women.” The discussion reinforced a clear message: financial autonomy remains a cornerstone of true empowerment.
Key Insights from the Webinar
Financial tools and financial knowledge are both crucial
In his opening remarks, Ecobank Group CEO Jeremy Awori highlighted persistent inequalities in access to finance despite the strong performance of women-owned businesses. He noted:
“Women debts tend to perform better than male debts… but the question is why are they only earning a third why don’t they get the same level of financing as their male counterparts.”
He reaffirmed the Group’s commitment to accelerating women’s empowerment through the enhanced Elevate programme:
“As an organization, we were very happy and proud to have launched Elevate by Ecobank… what we are also doing is enhancing our approach to training, mentoring and providing business advisory services… we are committed to bridging the knowledge gap and helping women entrepreneurs move from financial literacy to financial fluency.”
What financial freedom really means for women
Grace Muliisa, Managing Director of Ecobank Uganda, delivered a powerful perspective on what it means to be truly financially free. She began by acknowledging the complexity of the concept:
“For me, financial freedom is control, impact and legacy… control means having money that has your name on it… understanding is equally important because accessing money is one thing but understanding, appreciating, planning and investing it is very important.”
Empowerment requires access, confidence and long-term vision
The conversation showed that bridging the gender wealth gap goes far beyond providing financial products. It requires:
access to information
trusted financial partners
tailored support and mentoring
the confidence to plan and invest over time
Watch the replay
To revisit the full discussion and hear all insights from the speakers, watch the webinar replay here: https://youtube.com/live/rLMXAoL89k0?feature=share