In Tanzania, expectant mothers are supposed to receive free, basic prenatal care through government programs. However, there are many gaps in the system, including supply-chain challenges, limited financing, and a lack of transparency and accountability. As a result, many women find that they must pay out of pocket for much of their care during pregnancy, and that many vital services such as ultrasound scans are not included.
Client Stories
In Tanzania, Low-Cost Digital Insurance Protects Farmers
Smallholder farming in Tanzania has long been a risky enterprise. The hardworking farmers who raise many of the essential crops that feed their country and the world have traditionally run their enterprises on a shoestring budget, with limited capital for buying seeds and supplies, and little or no… Read more
November 3, 2022
SudPay’s Tax Collection Tool Improves Public Services, Expands Inclusion
As more people in Senegal and throughout Africa use mobile phones, tools like SudPay will be critical in helping local governments offer digital services, and connecting individuals with the financial services that can improve their lives. Read more
July 1, 2022
Innovative Insurance Products Help Farmers Guard Against Climate Shocks
For farmers in Senegal, a successful harvest largely depends on the amount of rain that falls during the growing season. More than two-thirds of the sector is entirely rain-fed, exposing smallholder farmers to a high level of volatility—a risk that has increased due to climate change. To help… Read more
June 30, 2022
In Senegal, myAgro Helps Farmers Save and Plan for the Future
When Badjane Diouf, a farmer in rural Senegal, was asked what her harvest is like since farming with myAgro, she shared that her harvest tripled from five bags of peanuts to 15 bags in her most recent growing season—enabling her to sell some of her harvest to save money and meet her family's food… Read more
June 28, 2022
Digital Finance Helps Rural Women Save and Grow Micro Businesses
In Côte d’Ivoire, as in many other low- and middle-income countries, low-income entrepreneurs often form small, informal groups to help members save money, access loans, and obtain emergency insurance. Since 2006, the international nonprofit organization CARE has been working in Côte d’Ivoire to… Read more
June 27, 2022
Wi-Agri’s Digital Platform Links Cashew Farmers with Buyers and Financing in Côte d’Ivoire
For the smallholder farmers who grow cashew nuts in rural Côte d’Ivoire, earning a steady living can be precarious. Many of them struggle to find buyers for their crops. Most of them are also unable to access loans and other financial services, making it difficult to save for the future or grow… Read more
June 24, 2022
Digital Financial Services Gives the Doughnut Business a Boost in Côte d'Ivoire
Guillaume Gnankou founded Gnank Inspiration, in the Abidjan neighborhood of M'pouto in 2017. Today, Miss Gnankou has grown that business to include one full-time employee and another part-time, two stalls, and offers the company's services online as well as with home deliveries through external… Read more
July 2, 2021
Move from Cash to Online Payments Helps Beauty Entrepreneurs Grow Business in West Africa
In charge of the technical and digital arm of e-commerce store Fabellashop, entrepreneur Felix Simaki decided to use PayDunya’s WebPay service to facilitate orders paid by credit cards and mobile money accounts. PayDunya is an online payments platform in Senegal founded in 2015 by four young tech… Read more
July 1, 2021
Finja and Unilever Partner to Digitize Supply Chain Payments in Pakistan
Muhammad Abid Islam, owner of the New Waseem General Store at Ghalib Market in Lahore, had problems with his staff that resulted in a financial loss last year. So, he decided to cut ties with his employees and manage the business end-to-end on his own.
To recuperate his losses, Mr. Abid Islam, a… Read more
January 17, 2020
Mobile Wallets: The Newest Tool for Beauticians at a Pakistani Startup
Safia Javed, a 48-year-old beautician and mother of three sons in Lahore, has been the lone breadwinner in her family since her husband experienced renal failure several years ago and can no longer work. However, being responsible for earning the money to support her family did not mean she was… Read more
January 16, 2020
Financial Inclusion and Job Skills Transform the Lives of Women in Bangladesh
For Bangladesh’s poorest women, the roadblocks to earn and save money have traditionally been high. A government program supported by UNDP known as SWAPNO (Strengthening Women’s Ability for Productive New Opportunities) aims to lower those barriers.
Implemented under the national social security… Read more
December 18, 2019
New Digital Platforms Expand Financial Options for Rural Dwellers in Bangladesh
When the UNSGSA last visited Bangladesh in 2015, she met rural residents who had just started to access financial services for the first time—along with vital government services and basic internet—due to an ambitious government program called Access to Information (a2i). Since, a2i has built on… Read more
December 16, 2019
