Empowered Women Make a Prosperous Nation

Countless studies have revealed that when women have equal access to resources, communities benefit from the additional productivity. One of the strongest levers to drive economic and social development is the inclusion of women. Access to capital is a primary constraint to the growth of female-owned businesses.

As a financial service company with strong roots and reach into the rural and suburban communities, AFL has taken this commitment to heart.

As of September 2022, 25% of AFL’s total portfolio comprised of women customers. This is to the service and agriculture sector, which amounts for 40% and 30% of the portfolio. The remaining caters to the transport, trading, and manufacturing sectors.

The occupation of these customers is 30% in farming, 30% in the private sector, with the remaining in trading, tailoring, fisheries, and self-employment. 

In April 2022, AFL launched ‘Liya Diriya’ (‘Encouraging & Supporting Women’) to finance mobility solutions for women. This lease/loan facility provides women with safe transportation and means of additional employment or facilitates the expansion of home-grown, small-scale business ventures. In a period of just 6 months the portfolio has grown to USD 0.75Million with 1,000+ customers and over 47% are in the agriculture sector which is critical for the Nation’s sustainability and food security. Further 90% of the customer base are aged between 20-50 years which extends the period in which they can contribute to the economy. 

As part of this initiative, full day programmes were conducted and the participating women were provided with comprehensive training on riding technics, road safety measures, road rules covering both the theory and practical aspects culminating in a written examination and a certificate to the successful candidates.