Ecobank and AFAWA Drive Expansion of Women-Led Business Financing Across Africa
Ecobank, a leading pan-African banking group operating in 33 countries, has reported significant progress in expanding access to finance for women entrepreneurs through its partnership with the African Development Bank Group’s Affirmative Finance Action for Women in Africa (AFAWA).
The initiative, supported by the African Development Bank Group and implemented in collaboration with financial institutions across the continent, is reshaping traditional lending models that have long relied heavily on collateral-based assessments, often limiting access for women-owned businesses.
Through AFAWA’s “Guarantee for Growth” mechanism, up to 75 per cent of loan risk for women-led enterprises is covered, enabling banks such as Ecobank to shift towards evaluating business performance and cash flow rather than physical assets. This shift has allowed credit officers to approve more loans that would previously have been considered too risky.
Ecobank’s Group Commercial Banking Head, Carol Oyedeji, said the bank has adopted an “outside-in” approach to financial product design, focusing on customer realities rather than traditional banking constraints.
She noted that the guarantee mechanism has “materially influenced decision-making” by reducing risk exposure and encouraging greater lending to women entrepreneurs.
The partnership has also driven internal innovation at Ecobank, including the introduction of contract-based financing, merchant cash advances, and the Ellevate programme, which is specifically tailored to support women-led enterprises with financing, training, and market access.
One beneficiary, Sierra Leonean freight forwarding entrepreneur Fatima Sesay, has grown her logistics company Unimax significantly through the programme. Initially accessing a loan of around USD 5,000, Sesay has since expanded her financing to approximately USD 40,000, enabling her to secure major contracts with organisations including the World Health Organization and DHL.
The funding allowed her to purchase additional trucks and expand her workforce, increasing staff numbers by 13 employees. Sesay said the support not only helped scale her business but also challenged stereotypes about women in entrepreneurship.
According to Ecobank, its portfolio of women-led businesses has grown from 9,400 in 2021 to more than 83,000 by the end of 2024, with lending reaching USD 265 million under the programme. The bank’s efforts were recognised in 2025 when it was named “AFAWA Bank of the Year” at the African Banker Awards.
AFAWA coordinator Melissa Basque-Roux said the partnership demonstrates the potential of de-risking financial systems to unlock large-scale investment in women-led businesses. Across the continent, the initiative has worked with more than 200 financial institutions and facilitated over USD 3.1 billion in financing for women entrepreneurs.
