RFAs: Gender-Smart Innovations to increase Access to Finance and Digital Inclusion for Women

UNCDF invites regulated financial institutions (banks, insurance providers, microfinance institutions), regulated peer-to-peer lending providers, agent banking aggregators, mobile money providers and Fintech companies to respond to the Request for Applications (RFA) Gender-Smart Innovations to Increase Access to Finance and Digital Inclusion for Women.

The RFA is supported by the Dutch Entrepreneurial Development Bank (FMO), and it is implemented by UNCDF, under its Leaving No One Behind in the Digital Era strategy. The RFA aims to accelerate economic recovery after COVID-19 and promote economies and societies more inclusive and resilient to external shocks by increasing access to finance for women. Additionally, this RFA would help to identify FSPs with a clear path and potential to become FMO’s customers in the next 3-5 years as highlighted from the requirements. Hence further opportunities for collaboration with FMO could potentially emerge as a result of this RFA.

Scope of Work

The scope of this work involves working with FSPs (i.e., MFIs, Banks, FinTech’s) investing in new technologies and developing and scaling up gender-smart products to increase access to finance for women. UNCDF through this RFA will support, through performance-based grants and technical assistance, applicants in developing and scaling digital financial services and digital tools, creating delivery channels and innovative business models to increase the access and usage of digital financial services for women, women-led MSMEs and women entrepreneurs in the target countries.

The objective is to:

• Increase access to and usage of gender-smart digital financial services for women and women-led MSMEs and women entrepreneurs in formal and informal sectors.
• Innovate products, delivery channels and business models through partnering with financial service providers that have digital financial services to bridge the “unbankable” gap for the women and women-led MSMEs and women entrepreneurs.

Funding Information

• The UNCDF contributions can be up to US$35,000 depending on the size and reach of the partner.
• Project duration Projects are expected to be completed by December 2024.

Eligibility Requirements

• Entity registration
  • The applicant must be a registered entity.
• Country of Operation
  • The applicant can be based anywhere globally but must have at least one year of operations in the focus countries of this RFA.
• FSPs outreach and sustainability figures
  • To be eligible, the FSP must have:
    • A balance sheet of minimum $30 million
    • Positive return on assets
    • Solid portfolio quality (PAR 30< than 10%)
    • Have a defined strategy targeting the lower-end of the market/underserved segments
    • Be currently providing or facilitating demand‐driven financial services (savings, credit, etc);
    • Made a stated commitment to providing and scaling up financial services to women;
    • Made a stated commitment to monitoring and evaluating results, and the willingness willing to share information and lessons learned with the international community;
    • Sufficient and reliable access to the Internet and related technology to participate in online discussions and to produce online learning products.
• Consortiums
  • Applicants may apply only once under the RFA, whether independently or in a consortium.
  • Joint applications between market players in the target countries are encouraged if the solution proposed will expand delivery networks and promote rural and/or other last-mile access to market and financial services.
  • Applications from consortiums of organizations must show that the partnership was established prior to this call for applications or due to this call for application with a letter of intent.
  • The lead applicant and their financial service provider partner must be registered entities with at least one year of operations and must have statutory accounts and audited financial statements for at least one operating year. If audited financial statements are not available at the time of application, the applicant must provide the latest management accounts at the due diligence stage and provide UNCDF with audited financial statements during the partnership.
• Project funding
  • Applicants must contribute at least 30 percent of the project’s cash costs (costs may include technical infrastructure, resources, and operation).
• The lead applicant will be responsible of:
  • Submitting the application form on behalf of the consortium.
  • Ensuring that each partner is fully aware of the composition of the partnership and of the contents of the Application Form.
  • Signing the PBA with UNCDF.
  • Fulfilling all obligations set out in the PBA.
  • Ensuring the allocation and the fulfilment of the funds amongst the partner in the consortium in compliance with the PBA.
  • Ensuring the allocation and the fulfilment of the tasks amongst the partner in the consortium in compliance with the PBA.
• Target segment
  • The primary target of the intervention is the women segment in any one of the target countries: Nepal, Indonesia, Ethiopia, Zambia.

For more information, visit UNCDF.