IFC pushes data-driven lending to boost women-owned businesses

The International Finance Corporation has called for greater adoption of data-driven lending and alternative credit assessment models to improve access to financing for women-owned businesses across Africa, particularly Nigeria.

The IFC Africa Regional Lead for Gender Solutions and Impact, Marieme Niang, said financial institutions should move beyond traditional collateral requirements and use reliable business records, cash flow and digital transaction histories to assess creditworthiness.

A member of the World Bank Group, the IFC is the largest global development institution focused on the private sector in emerging markets and developing economies, providing investment, advisory services and capital mobilisation to support business growth and job creation.

Speaking in an exclusive interview with The PUNCH on Saturday on the sidelines of the Creative Africa Nexus Weekend 2026 in Lagos, Niang said the approach would help address financing barriers confronting women entrepreneurs.

“More and more for SMEs, we want to move away from the traditional guarantees that banks, financiers are asking for and just make sure that we use data as a new collateral but for trusted data,” she said.

Niang explained that many small businesses operated largely through cash transactions, making it difficult for lenders to assess their financial performance.

“Cash flow is what will make the bank comfortable in order to give you money if you don’t have cash collateral or guarantees,” she stated.

She advocated greater digitalisation of business transactions to establish reliable financial records, adding that banks should develop financing products tailored to women entrepreneurs rather than treating all SMEs alike.

“Like, we talked about alternative credit scoring. We talked about alternative financing, looking at the cash flow, etc., looking at the data about the businesses women are generating,” she said.

Niang also advocated adoption of the WeFinance Code, which encourages financial institutions to report gender-disaggregated data, develop women-focused financial products and increase female representation in leadership.

She said central bank involvement could strengthen implementation of the framework.

The IFC official noted that women entrepreneurs frequently complained about inadequate financing, while lenders argued that many businesses lacked investment readiness.

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She explained that IFC was addressing both challenges through business coaching, mentorship, technical assistance and investor connections.

According to her, the first phase of the She Wins Africa initiative supported 100 women entrepreneurs across 23 countries and mobilised more than $4m.

The beneficiaries operated in healthcare, agribusiness, tourism, technology and creative industries, with selected businesses receiving catalytic grants to attract additional investment.

The second phase, She Wins Africa Academy, aims to support 1,000 women-led businesses, with greater emphasis on peer learning, business development and programme completion.

Niang said entrepreneurs should also seek financing appropriate to their development stages, beginning with fintech and microfinance options before approaching commercial banks and investment funds as their businesses mature.

She disclosed that IFC was designing its Sourcing2Equal programme for Nigeria to connect women-owned businesses with major corporate buyers.

The initiative, already implemented in Kenya, supported 345 enterprises from a pool of 1,122 women entrepreneurs.

She explained that IFC was strengthening the Kenyan programme to address difficulties women encountered financing contracts after securing corporate customers.

Similar investment-readiness and financing initiatives were being implemented in Senegal and Mozambique.

On Nigeria’s business environment, Niang praised the country’s creative industries but identified fragmentation and inadequate collaboration as obstacles to expansion.

She urged entrepreneurs to strengthen corporate governance, develop sustainable business strategies and embrace partnerships.