FSD Africa, the FSD Network’s gender collaborative programme, British International Investment and the United Nations Entity for Gender Equality and the Empowerment of Women have launched a gender bonds toolkit which is a guide for advancing gender equality and climate action in African capital markets.
The toolkit launched in Nairobi on Monday, aims to deepen the understanding of gender bonds and their potential to mobilise capital for women’s empowerment initiatives within the African capital markets context, according to a statement.
“With the launch of the gender bonds toolkit, FSD Africa together with our partners are catalysing a seismic shift in African capital markets,” Mark Napier, chief executive officer of FSD Africa, said in the statement.
He said the initiative not only signifies its commitment to gender equality but serves as a powerful tool to mobilise capital, foster sustainable growth, and empower women across the continent.
“As a founding member of the 2X Challenge and a leader in providing gender finance, BII is committed to empowering women’s economic development. This means that we’re constantly looking for new ways in which we can mobilise more capital and better support women,” Jo Fry, investment director, and head of intermediated financial services at BII said.
“Our goal in producing this guide is to demonstrate and create a better understanding of how effective gender impact bonds can be as an investment tool to advance gender equality in Africa,” she said.
The gender bonds toolkit is expected to build a pipeline of Gender Lens Investing opportunities within African capital markets, promoting sustainable growth while providing clear guidance on how to incorporate gender metrics into businesses that address the slow progress of gender lens investing.
