<\/p>\n
Speaking to Channel Africa, Dzedze said research shows that countries with higher levels of gender equality are less likely to experience conflict and are more likely to have resilient communities. \u201cResearch from the World Bank, it actually says that countries that actually have far greater gender equality with high levels of gender equality are less likely to experience conflict. And they tend to have far more resilient communities,\u201d Dzedze said.<\/p>\n
<\/p>\n
Dzedze said financial inclusion should not be viewed only as a women\u2019s business issue, but as a continental development and security priority. \u201cEconomic empowerment is really the foundation for peace and security,\u201d Dzedze said.<\/p>\n
<\/p>\n
According to Dzedze, when women control income and assets, household spending shifts towards education, nutrition and wealth creation. \u201cWe’re not just talking about funding businesses or women. We are making our continent far more stable and resilient,\u201d Dzedze said.<\/p>\n
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Dzedze said microfinance remains useful, but African economies need larger-scale funding models that help women-led businesses grow beyond survivalist levels.<\/p>\n
<\/p>\n
Dzedze pointed to the African Women Impact Fund as an example of a platform designed to grow women-owned and women-led fund managers. \u201cWe are looking to create a sustainable platform to grow women-owned and women-led fund managers. And that means now women managing money at a macro level,\u201d Dzedze said.<\/p>\n
<\/p>\n
Dzedze said evidence shows that women fund managers are more likely to invest in women-led businesses, creating greater scale and impact. \u201cWe want to see more growth happening that will see women making decisions and managing money at a macro level that will drive far more scale and impact than currently is,\u201d Dzedze said.<\/p>\n
<\/p>\n
Beyond finance, Dzedze said women continue to face barriers including limited access to value chains, lack of collateral, patriarchy and restrictions on women\u2019s rights in some markets.<\/p>\n
<\/p>\n
Dzedze said financial power can also help women escape abusive situations. \u201cWhen women have the financial muscle to be able to look after themselves and their children, they’re able to move themselves from those situations,\u201d Dzedze said.<\/p>\n
<\/p>\n
On implementation, Dzedze said policies alone are not enough. \u201cPolicy and everything else doesn’t change lives. They sit on the shelf. It’s actually the implementation that matters,\u201d Dzedze said.<\/p>\n
<\/p>\n
Dzedze called for stronger disclosure, reporting and measurement on how much funding reaches women. \u201cWe know that what you measure gets done,\u201d Dzedze said.<\/p>\n
<\/p>\n
Dzedze said commercial banks, development finance institutions, central banks, policymakers, pension funds and other market players need to work from the same evidence base.<\/p>\n
<\/p>\n
Dzedze also cited women farmers in Malawi who formed cooperatives and expanded into commercial farming and exports. \u201cThey came together as a co-op, and they were actually able to have the muscle to do far, far more,\u201d Dzedze said.<\/p>\n
<\/p>\n
Ahead of Women\u2019s Month, Dzedze urged action instead of rhetoric. \u201cLet’s move from talking to doing. Women are integral to the success of the continent,\u201d Dzedze said.<\/p>\n
<\/p>\n
Dzedze said women\u2019s full participation could lift Africa\u2019s gross domestic product by 10%.<\/p>\n
<\/p>\n
\u201cWhy are we not doing this? So it’s not clear that the numbers are out there. It’s the mindset change, and this is why we’re pushing for disclosure,\u201d Dzedze said.<\/p>\n
<\/p>\n
–ChannelAfrica–<\/p>\n","protected":false},"featured_media":41437,"template":"","meta":{"_acf_changed":false},"news-type":[44],"class_list":["post-41436","news","type-news","status-publish","has-post-thumbnail","hentry","news-type-finance","entry"],"acf":{"short_description":"African Women\u2019s Impact Fund Chairperson Lindeka Dzedze says women\u2019s economic empowerment is central to peace, stability and resilience across Africa.","published_date":"","news_description":"African Women\u2019s Impact Fund Chairperson Lindeka Dzedze says women\u2019s economic empowerment is central to peace, stability and resilience across Africa.","form_embed":"","author":"","image_caption":""},"_links":{"self":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.channelafrica.co.za\/channelafrica\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/news\/41436","targetHints":{"allow":["GET"]}}],"collection":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.channelafrica.co.za\/channelafrica\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/news"}],"about":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.channelafrica.co.za\/channelafrica\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/types\/news"}],"version-history":[{"count":1,"href":"https:\/\/www.channelafrica.co.za\/channelafrica\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/news\/41436\/revisions"}],"predecessor-version":[{"id":41438,"href":"https:\/\/www.channelafrica.co.za\/channelafrica\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/news\/41436\/revisions\/41438"}],"wp:featuredmedia":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.channelafrica.co.za\/channelafrica\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media\/41437"}],"wp:attachment":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.channelafrica.co.za\/channelafrica\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media?parent=41436"}],"wp:term":[{"taxonomy":"news-type","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.channelafrica.co.za\/channelafrica\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/news-type?post=41436"}],"curies":[{"name":"wp","href":"https:\/\/api.w.org\/{rel}","templated":true}]}}