The Women's Entrepreneurship Finance Innovation Hub Solutions Clinic will explore how better collection, analysis, and use of data can improve financing outcomes for women-owned and women-led SMEs. Discussions will focus on moving beyond basic reporting and sex-disaggregated data collection toward actionable insights that help financial service providers better understand customer needs, design more relevant products, manage risk, and demonstrate impact.
Participants will examine practical challenges including limited availability of open and shared data, inconsistent collection practices, privacy and accuracy concerns, and the gap between data collection and meaningful business decision-making. The clinic will also explore how entrepreneurs themselves can leverage digital footprints and self-generated data to strengthen their ability to access finance.
Special attention will be given to the role of data in serving underserved populations, including women entrepreneurs facing additional vulnerabilities such as disability, geographic exclusion, or informality. The session will generate practical problem statements and collaborative solutions that can inform future SME Finance Forum initiatives and member engagement activities through GSMEFF 2027.