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For private circulation only Issue 24

Divers i tySpeak@RQBE

Q: What are the gender specific challenges in achieving financial inclusivity?

A: There is a persistent access and usage gap between men and women in formal financial services. This is partlydue to women's lower incomes. To reach women, providers must accommodate lower incomes, even smallertransactions, and be relevant to the kinds of income that women earn. The financial needs of men and women aregenerally different. Women's financial responsibilities are often around managing small amounts of short term liquidity,whereas men are more focussed on growth and asset creation. The geography women operate in is smaller too. Thetwo genders think, behave and operate differently. The income pathway for men is more consistent. Women facemany disruptions in their life cycle. It consists of several stops and starts. The way our financial products arestructured, their messaging is we do not want small money. That tends to exclude women.

It is, therefore, very important to be sensitive to the differences and not being judgmental of what a woman can do. Wesee stereotyping of roles for woman and man. Who should be making these decisions?

Q. What are you doing in your current role to address these impediments whilerecognising the diversity?

A: Omidyar Network is a social impact investment firm. We back new ideas andentrepreneurs that can create social impact at scale. Financial inclusion is one of thefive sectors we work in and our endeavour is to back investments in ideas that use innovation and technology toprovide affordable access to financial services to all. One of our investee companies has built an automatedinteractive messaging platform on mobile phone that helps first time account holders to improve their usage of the

Smita Aggarwal leads strategy and investments for Omidyar Network's FinancialInclusion initiative in India. She was our guest of honour on March 8th, commemoratingthe International Women's Day.

Smita has spent significant amount of her professional time in pursuit of governance, riskmanagement and strategy relating to financial inclusion, digital banking, loans and thirdparty products to rural customers. She has a proven track record in introducinginnovative products and channels to improve convenience and access to customers.

Through her volunteering for the Indian Cancer Society, Smita spearheads one of thelargest pan-India projects providing financial grants to poor cancer patients. She wasalso instrumental in conceptualising and launching the first ever debt mutual fund for supporting cancer cures.

A Chartered Accountant, Smita has attended executive programs at the HBS and MITSloan. Here she shares some invaluable first hand insights into D&I with MD & CEOPraveen Gupta.

“The income pathwayfor men is moreconsistent. Women facemany disruptions intheir life cycle.”

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account and save more. Another investee company in Indonesia provides a mobile based savings product through awidespread agent network in close proximity of the target customer population.

Q. How can technology be a catalyst for financial inclusion?

A: The introduction of 'Jan Dhan Yojana' has led to a Guinness Book of world record for opening of new bankaccounts. The worldwide disparity between men to women owning bank accounts is 7%. However, in India it is 20%.Likewise in the mobile ownership there is a variance of 40%. We have a big gap to bridge in our attempt to empowerwomen.

Q: Do you see the prescriptions by the Indian Companies Act 2013 finally breaking the glass ceiling forwomen at board levels?

A: Over the years we see biases which need not have not been consciously practised yet they just go on. Boardappointments are generally by word of mouth. The existing order, therefore, keeps regenerating itself. How do youbecome a part of such a group? You need an entry, the Companies Act is just one such door opener for women.

Q: How do you see the world of men and women through the lens of what you do at the Indian Cancer Society

(ICS)?

A: Families from all over India bring their women folk for treatment against cancer tothe ICS and then one fine morning some of them just disappear. Abandoning the

women. Sometimes even leaving behind the dependent child. It ’ s heart breaking tosee that the woman who is all the more in need of all the emotional and financialsupport when suffering from cancer, is simply abandoned by her own near and dearones - only because of her gender. The number of men and boys seeking treatmentat the Tata Memorial Hospital is twice that of women. The motivation for boys and men to get cured is higher. We had

this case where a lady was thrown out of the house for pursuing her daughter's treatment.

Growing up in a secure and respectful environment - we live in different worlds.

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“We need to be sensitive tothe fact that businessliteracy can be independentof formal literacy.Cognisance of suchbehaviour will lead to amore user friendlytechnology .”

Over the years I had been paying my maid her salary in cash. Heralcoholic husband would physically abuse her to get the money.However, ever since I opened a bank account for her with an ATMcard, there is a big difference in the husband's behaviour. He is muchmore respectful. Such is the ripple effect of these small things whichtechnology facilitates. Unfortunately, women have lower literacywhich denies them accessing mobile technology. We need to besensitive to the fact that business literacy can be independent offormal literacy. Cognisance of such behaviour will lead to a more userfriendly technology. Moreover, technology allows you to do so manythings and location is of no consequence.

“Growing up in a secureand respectfulenvironment - we live indifferent worlds. ”

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