More women entrepreneurs borrowing from financial institutions due to pandemic

 Despite the Covid-19 crisis, the pandemic might emerge as the turning point for the women entrepreneurs as the figures suggest 85 per cent jump in the loans offered to the women-owned enterprises in the last seven months. 

By mid-July 2020 financial institutions’ lending to women entrepreneurs stood at Rs 4 billion, the amount has reached Rs 27 billion as of now, informed executive director and spokesperson of the central bank, Dr  Gunakar Bhatta at a webinar titled ‘Towards recovery: Women entrepreneurs coping with the pandemic’ oraganised by South Asia Watch on Trade, Economics and Environment (SAWTEE). 

He also pointed out that the number of female borrowers has also increased three-fold during the period. 

Highlighting the difficulty in access to finance experienced by the women entrepreneurs, senior gender, rights and policy specialist Chandni Joshi, expressed that investing in women should not be considered a charity but as a smart decision. She urged the private sector to invest in women-owned-led businesses as viable business decisions.

Likewise, vice president of Federation of Nepalese Cottage and Small Industries (FNCSI) Shobha Gurung pointed out the difficulty faced by their members as the economic activities shut-down but they also utilised the period to enhance the digital and financial literacy of the members. She pointed out that during disasters like these, small businesses need more support from the government to survive. Federation of Women Entrepreneurs’ Association of Nepal (FWEAN) president Reeta Simha also seconded that suggestion. She also insisted along with the soft skills entrepreneurs need better support in the form of finances for their recovery and revival.

Chief executive officer at Enterprise for Management, Economic Reform and Gender Equality (EMERGE) Dr Mona Shrestha Adhikari said that women entrepreneurs need more support to help transition from brick-and-mortar setting to digital. She added more analysis is needed to examine disaster impacts through a gender lens.

The webinar was organised to disseminate the findings of a small-scale survey of women entrepreneurs engaged in the manufacturing sector conducted by SAWTEE to examine the impact of the pandemic on their ability to do business. The survey found that 61 per cent of the women-owned businesses reported having been affected severely by the pandemic and the lockdown measures; some 57 per cent of the respondent sought loans to cope with the pandemic; some 56 per cent of the respondents used e-commerce platforms for sales or promotion during the period. Further, some 92 per cent of the respondents were not aware of any support facilities offered by the government, revealed senior research officer at SAWTEE Dikshya Singh.

On the occasion, chair of SAWTEE Dr Posh Raj Pandey pointed out the lack of mentorship offered to women entrepreneurs, by private sector associations, government and civil society, during the pandemic to help them innovate and shift towards the digital landscape.

The participants in the webinar included women entrepreneurs, representatives from civil society organisations, policymakers and academia. They pointed out limited access to information for the women entrepreneurs that inhibits their ability to expand their businesses. Similarly, they also insisted that the difficulty in accessing finance needs to be addressed for enhancing women’s participation in the entrepreneurial ecosystem.