Bank of Uganda has unveiled the Women Entrepreneurs (WE) Finance Code, a pivotal step in bridging the financial gap for women in Uganda.

The new initiative is bolstered by BoU's National Gender/Financial Inclusion Dashboard, which aims to bring more women into the financial sector and equip BoU with the necessary data to craft tailored products for women.

Despite being a vital component of Uganda's entrepreneurial landscape, women continue to face significant barriers, including lack of collateral, cultural restrictions, and limited financial literacy.

The challenges these women encounter hinder their business growth, despite evidence suggesting that closing the gender gap could lead to significant boosts in MSMEs, job creation, and household resilience.

The WE Finance Code seeks to address these issues by advocating for inclusive policies, improving access to affordable finance, and encouraging financial institutions to develop products tailored to the needs of underserved women.

Uganda's financial inclusion rate stands at 81 per cent, with a narrow gender gap of just two percentage points, yet stakeholders emphasize the need to tackle persistent barriers. At the launch in Kampala, Richard Byarugaba, representing the deputy governor, highlighted the initiative's significance.

"The WE Finance Code calls on us all to be gender-sensitive in our financing decisions," he noted, stressing that the new dashboard will facilitate evidence-based interventions and enhance tracking of gender-disaggregated financial data.

Government programs such as the GROW Project, Agricultural Credit Facility, and Parish Development Model have already expanded opportunities for women, particularly those operating without collateral.

The WE Finance Code and dashboard are expected to reinforce these achievements by coordinating stakeholder efforts and ensuring transparency. The Bank of Uganda will function as the National Data Aggregator, enhancing the dashboard's capacity to centralize information for regulators, policymakers, banks, and development partners.

By implementing a unified and transparent strategy, officials aim to prevent duplication of efforts and foster significant advancements for women entrepreneurs.

This launch underscores a renewed commitment to ensuring that women are integral to Uganda's financial development journey. Stakeholders are encouraged to collaborate closely to maintain momentum and realize genuine inclusive financial progress.