Women in finance turn evidence into action in South Africa

New Faces New Voices (NFNV) South Africa, the local chapter of the Graça Machel Trust's women-in-finance network, is turning data into real change. In partnership with the Finance and Accounting Services Sector Education and Training Authority (FASSET), it commissioned the Study on the Status of Women's Financial Inclusion in South Africa. The report highlighted what many women already knew from experience: formal finance often shuts them out through complex marriage regimes, spousal consent requirements, rigid rules for stokvels and information that is not offered in accessible languages.

These findings became the starting point for the Trusts' recent series of Women's Financial Inclusion Dialogues in the Free State and Gauteng, building on a national Women in Finance Leadership Masterclass held in July 2025. More than 150 women, most of them entrepreneurs, met to reflect on the evidence, share their own stories and co-design practical solutions that match their realities.

Out of these conversations, women did more than attend an event; they joined a growing movement. New provincial chapters of NFNV were launched in the Eastern Cape, Free State and Gauteng. Strategic partners such as EasyEquities, 1000 Women Trust and Standard Bank Group are helping to open doors to investment platforms, financial education, mental-health support and new business opportunities. Together, they show what is possible when an ecosystem rallies around women's economic advancement.

"For us, this work is about more than a single report or dialogue. It strengthens New Faces New Voices' mandate to expand women's influence in the financial sector. When we bring issues that used to be private into public spaces, and back them with evidence from women themselves, everyday frustrations start to shift into clear, shared policy priorities." - Temitope Ogunlela, Networks Senior Programmes Officer at GMT.

Africa's top women regulators close ranks to narrow the gender gap in finance

The Graça Machel Trust's Expert Leaders Group (ELG) is showing how a small circle of senior women in central banks can move entire financial systems. At the July 2025 strategic meeting, four leaders shared how they are pushing their institutions to work better for women.

In Rwanda, Governor Soraya described a nationwide push to bring rural women into digital finance. Through village-level training, women's councils and partnerships with financial service providers, the central bank is connecting tens of thousands of women to mobile money and savings products. Mobile money use among women has risen sharply in just a few years, turning basic phones into powerful tools for income, security and independence.

Deputy Governor Sauda shared how the Bank of Tanzania is working with a new Tanzania Women in Finance Association, launched under presidential patronage. The association brings regulators, banks and women executives into one forum to confront bias in lending, influence policy and grow the pipeline of women leaders in the sector. National forums led by female banking CEOs are helping to keep women's financial inclusion on the public agenda.

Zambia's story, shared by Dr Tukiya and Deputy Governor Rekha, showed what happens when banks buy into the vision. Zambia has adopted a new Financial Inclusion Strategy with clear targets for women. Commercial banks are responding with tailored products, partnerships and data efforts that track how many women they are reaching, rather than assuming "business as usual" is enough.

These efforts illustrate how the Expert Leaders Group gives Africa's top women regulators a trusted space to compare what is working, share tools and push one another to go further. Most importantly, it keeps women's financial inclusion on the table as a core measure of how well African financial systems are serving their people.

Women in clean energy claim their place in Africa's just transition

Through the Women in Clean Energy and Climate Action Network, the Graça Machel Trust is ensuring that women's voices help shape how Africa powers its future. In September 2025, Director of Programmes Shiphra Chisha represented the Trust at the Energy Forum for Africa (EFFA) in Lusaka, Zambia. On a fireside chat panel, she shared lessons from women in energy across the continent and made a clear case for why women and youth must be at the centre of Africa's energy transition.

The Network, which is already active in Mozambique and Zambia and is preparing to expand into Ghana, Uganda and Tanzania, is proving that when women lead, energy solutions become more inclusive, sustainable and grounded in community realities. At EFFA, Shiphra stood alongside the President of Zambia, Hakainde Hichilema, Hope Chanda, CEO of the Energy Forum for Africa, and Melissa Rekas from the Women in Energy Network, underscoring the importance of collaboration between government, industry and civil society.

"We recommit to our vision: to ensure that women are at the forefront of Africa's clean energy and climate action. We are building bridges, driving impact and powering inclusivity for a better tomorrow," Shiphra said.