Ghana - Financial services for women entrepreneurs in the informal sector

54994 No. 136 June 1999 Findings occasionally reports on development initiatives not assisted by the World Bank. This article is one such effort. The views expressed here do not necessarily reflect the views of the World Bank Group, the Government of Ghana, or the banks and NGOs mentioned. Ghana : Financial services for women entrepreneurs in the informal sector Background The Ghana Microfinance Institution (MFI) Action Research Network brings together organizations interested in providing financial services to the poor in Ghana. With World Bank support, the network carried out this study which provides brief descriptions of the innovations that informal, semi-formal, and formal MFIs have developed in providing financial services to female entrepreneurs in Ghana. It also makes recommendations on how such services can be strengthened and improved. Financial delivery mechanisms targeting women For socio-cultural and other reasons, women, as girls, would not have had access to education, and those who did would have accessed lower levels of this resource. This lack of access to education and low literacy levels has hampered their ability to: