FIF is a platform which  illuminates  untold stories of gender and how the subject is tackled by   ongoing financial inclusion efforts by  governments, private sector and civil society.

Research shows that women are essential players in the fight to eradicate poverty, educate children, and boost GDPs. And these women of impact – whether they have power or not, – can substantively influence the lives and futures of other women and girls in the financial inclusion journey. In other words, they are levers for development and progress around the country. If we truly want to empower women and girls in the financial inclusion journey, we must share broadly the narratives that highlight the impact of this significant group, the

challenges they face in carrying out their roles, and the conditions necessary to enable them be at the centre of the financial system.

Underpinning FIF’s broad j work is a unifying mission: to search for stories that illuminate facts and ideas with national or regional resonance and utility, stories that  bring graphs and charts alive and illustrate how disparate communities or individuals or systems can learn from where it is working or work on where . We draw out lessons from  these stories that defy geography and demographics –financial inclusion patterns that connect women in rural areas, forexample, to their counterparts in other parts of the country or continent in instructive ways.

Pesa Message Line

Pesa Forum also runs a Pesa Text Line, a free, around the clock text-­‐messaging support line for farmers across the country, informing them on available finance,insurance and market opportunities and how to make use of them. It’s a way for farmers to get information through their primary form of communication— mobile phones.

Farmers who are contacted talk by text with us about issues like access to finance, markets, insurance, business tips and investments.We rely on  a database of individual farmers and farmers’ organisations  who connect with them on relevant information on the themes explained.The service continues to grow with the number of text messages send increasing especially during harvesting and cultivation months.

Regarding this service, FIF  has been working on its data collection and analysis, and has been working to make its service more relevant to the needs of farmers and their circumstances, faster and more accurate.