Alternative Approaches to Collateral to Increase Women’s Access to Rural and Agricultural Finance

Agricultural lending is considered "high risk" by formal financial institutions, as farmers are more vulnerable to changes in weather, rainfall levels, pests, and infestations, as well as price fluctuations. As a result of these perceived and actual risks, loans for smallholder farmers require high rates of collateral. This situation is exacerbated for rural women, who often do not inherit and possess assets or properties that can be accepted by formal financial institutions as conventional forms of collateral.

This virtual dialogue of the Parliamentarians Actions for Gender Equality and Resilient Food Systems in Response to Covid-19 series brought together parliamentarians, financial institutions, and other main stakeholders to discuss the importance of developing alternative approaches for risk sharing and management that can increase women’s access to finance through alternative collateral requirements.

Learn more: https://www.iisd.org/events/pa....rliamentarian-action

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