On October 12, 2017, at the inaugural meeting of its governing council, the World Bank Group launched a US$340 million facility to support women entrepreneurs in developing countries and increase their access to the finance, markets, technology, and networks.

According to the Bank, 70 percent of women-owned, small and medium-size businesses in developing countries lack access to finance, which leads to a deficit of almost US$300 billion per year. Women entrepreneurs in these countries also face other constraints, such as limited access to knowledge, technology and networks as well as legal and policy obstacles. The newly launched facility aims at tackling many of these issues.

More information can be found in a recently published brochure and on the website.