The World Bank Group Gender Strategy 2024–2030 aims to accelerate gender equality with the goal of ending poverty on a livable planet. The report highlights significant challenges, including slow progress in gender equality and the need for sustained commitment, innovation, and collective action. Key focus areas include ending gender-based violence, promoting economic opportunities for women, and increasing their leadership roles. Currently, women’s labor force participation is 53% compared to 80% for men, and women hold only 20% of corporate board seats worldwide. Gender-based violence impacts one in three women globally. Additionally, two-thirds of the world’s maternal deaths occur in Africa, and women earn just 77 cents for every dollar earned by men. The strategy emphasizes the necessity of addressing these issues to achieve meaningful progress in gender equality and improve economic and social outcomes for women.

Leadway Assurance Côte d’Ivoire, in collaboration with the International Finance Corporation (IFC), has launched the Leadway Queen program to provide customized insurance solutions for women in Côte d’Ivoire. The initiative aims to empower women by offering products designed to meet their specific needs, including health, funeral expenses, and education insurance. This program taps into the significant opportunity within the women’s market, projected to be worth $1.7 trillion globally by 2030. In Côte d’Ivoire, where women represent 56% of the labor force and a significant portion is employed in the informal sector, the insurance market is the fifth largest in Sub-Saharan Africa, with premiums totaling approximately $806 billion in 2022. Despite this, 37.4% of Ivorian women have an account at a financial institution or mobile money provider. Women entrepreneurs make up about 26% of the country’s micro, small, and medium enterprises (MSMEs), facing unmet financing needs estimated at $144 million. The Leadway Queen program has achieved notable success, with a fourfold increase in new women insurance clients and a sixfold increase in new policies sold to women.

The report "Her Fintech Edge: Market Insights for Inclusive Growth" examines how fintech firms can enhance financial inclusion for women, a critical area given the growing potential of digital financial services (DFS). Despite the increasing opportunities in this sector, women remain significantly underrepresented due to barriers such as lower digital literacy and restrictive cultural norms. The study emphasizes the importance for fintech companies to strategically address these challenges by leveraging sex-disaggregated data (SDD) and developing tailored products designed to meet women's specific needs. The report reveals that while 59% of fintech firms collect sex-disaggregated data, only a few use it strategically to target and serve women effectively. Additionally, 63% of lending-focused fintech firms report that women make up less than 25% of their business customers, and 27% of fintech firms offering savings and payments services indicate that women constitute less than 25% of their retail customer base. Addressing these gaps through targeted strategies can unlock the substantial economic potential within the women’s market and foster greater financial inclusion.

The report "Gender-Responsive Climate Governance and the Role of Women Leaders" examines how companies in emerging markets and developing economies (EMDEs) are integrating gender and climate considerations into their governance frameworks. It highlights that 52% of large EMDE enterprises have formal commitments to climate governance. Despite this, only 19% of companies integrate gender considerations into their environmental sustainability strategies. The report also notes that 34% of EMDE-based companies have been impacted by extreme weather events in the past five years, reflecting the urgent need for effective climate strategies. Regarding gender diversity, 71% of large EMDE companies and 66% of micro, small, and medium enterprises (MSMEs) have formal gender diversity and inclusion (D&I) commitments. However, there remains a significant gap in leveraging gender diversity for climate action. Companies with at least three female directors see a 55% increase in their ESG ratings, illustrating the positive impact of women's leadership on environmental, social, and governance outcomes.

The report "Driving Sustainability through Gender Diversity in Nepal's Hydropower Sector" underscores the achievements of the Powered by Women Nepal Initiative in advancing gender diversity within the sector. Women make up only 10% of the hydropower workforce in Nepal, but significant progress has been made through the initiative. Between 2020 and 2023, female representation on boards increased from 10% to 17%, and the percentage of women in managerial roles rose from 19% to 31%. The initiative has led to 12 companies adopting gender-mainstreamed HR policies, and 15 companies have reported benefits such as reduced absenteeism and increased productivity due to these gender-inclusive practices. Women now hold 5% of technical roles, and 67 women have stepped into non-traditional roles within the sector. The initiative has influenced 18 active member companies to improve gender diversity, with 100% of participating companies expressing satisfaction with the program. This demonstrates the initiative's role in not only promoting gender diversity but also enhancing overall business performance and sustainability in Nepal's hydropower sector.