Luiza Carvalho, UN Women Regional Director for the Americas and the Caribbean and Manuel Méndez del Río Piovich, chairman of the BBVA Microfinance Foundation, signed a collaboration agreement in Panama today.
- The agreement contemplates joint actions in several spheres with the aim of improving the well-being of low-income women entrepreneurs throughout the region by fostering their productive development.
- UN Women is the United Nations agency for gender equality and the empowerment of women. UN Women focuses on priority areas that are fundamental to women’s equality and can drive progress for society in general.
- The BBVA Microfinance Foundation currently serves 1.5 million underprivileged entrepreneurs throughout the region, 61% of whom are women. Since its creation in 2007, the Foundation has delivered 6.6 billion dollars in productive credits to 4.6 million people to enable them to develop their businesses.
Luiza Carvalho, Regional Director for the Americas and the Caribbean for the United Nations agency for Gender Equality and Empowerment of Women (UN WOMEN) and Manuel Méndez del Río Piovich, chairman of the BBVA Microfinance Foundation, today in Panama signed an agreement to promote the development and inclusion of low-income women entrepreneurs in Latin America and the Caribbean.
The agreement establishes the joint collaboration between the institutions in a range of spheres, and involves preparing studies, establishing alliances with partners and implementing projects to improve the quality of life of low-income women entrepreneurs in the region.
Luiza Carvalho, Regional Director for the Americas and the Caribbean for UN WOMEN said that “Investing in the economic empowerment of women contributes directly to closing the gender equality gap, to eradicating poverty and to inclusive economic growth. When women contribute significantly to a country’s economy it has a direct effect on human development in these societies and in the communities where they live”.
The chairman of the BBVA Microfinance Foundation pointed out that “this agreement is the result of the shared conviction of both institutions on the importance of the role of women in the economy, and as a pivotal figure in reducing poverty. Their outstanding potential for entrepreneurship is without a doubt a driver of prosperity and well-being for their families, and for the social development of their communities”.
About UN Women
UN Women is the United Nations agency dedicated to promoting gender equality and the empowerment of women. As a global defender of women and girls, UN Women was set up to accelerate the progress towards improving the living conditions of women and to respond to the challenges they face throughout the world.
About BBVA Microfinance Foundation
The BBVA Microfinance Foundation is a non-profit organization specializing in promoting the economic and social development of disadvantaged sectors of society by means of Productive Finance, its specialty and methodology.
The BBVA Microfinance Foundation is currently the philanthropic initiative with the greatest social impact in Latin America and the leading operator in terms of number of customers (1.5 million customers), with its own individual methodology, in the region. Since its creation in 2007, it has delivered 6.642 billion dollars in productive loans to 4.6 million low-income entrepreneurs throughout the region.
The Foundation is currently present in seven countries in the region through eight microfinance institutions: Banco de las Microfinanzas Bancamía (Colombia), Financiera Confianza (Peru); Banco de Ahorro y Crédito ADOPEM (Dominican Republic); Microserfin (Panama); Fondo Esperanza and Emprende Microfinanzas (Chile); Contigo (Argentina); and Microfinanzas PR (Puerto Rico).
85% of the customers served by the Foundation are poor or vulnerable with an average income per capita of US$4/day, 52% have no education or have only basic studies, and 33% are young people. 96% of the Foundation’s customers are currently achieving success in the business enterprise they have embarked on.