Women Initiatives Financial Literacy Fellowship

Problem Statement:

The gender gap in financial inclusion is found in both emerging and advanced economies with well-developed financial markets. Across geographies, financial illiteracy is a challenge that disproportionately affects more women than men. Gender disparities in financial literacy compounded women's difficulties in securing their financial future and well-being and participating confidently in economic and financial activities. A publication by Mckinsey Global Institute confirms that the failure to embrace gender diversity has prevented Africa from achieving social and economic progress and hindered women from reaching their full potential.

Target Group:

Select university students chosen from African countries

Proposed Solution:

Our proposed solution is a 6-month fellowship focused on personal finance for select university students chosen from African countries to inspire them to become financially literate, develop a strong financial foundation, and become economically independent (https://medium.com/global-shapers-houston-women-initiative).

Hub Activities:

The Houston Hub aims to contribute towards the UN SDG goals 4&5 by educating these students on making intelligent financial decisions.

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  Module 1: Economic fundamentals include opportunity costs, wants versus needs, the essence of having financial security


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  Module 2: Developing a healthy money mindset, healthy relationship with money, and good spending habits


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  Module 3: Budgeting, Savings, emergency fund, developing a good credit history, how to manage your debt, tax planning, insurance, and retirement planning


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  Module 4: How to make money, multiple streams of income


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  Module 5: Investing, all you need to know about investing, how to invest, types of investment (traditional assets and alternative assets), investing domestically and internationally, and how to Managing your investment risk


•  Module 6: How to make your first million

Short & Long-Term Goals/Results:

The Houston Hub has partnered with Femme Minty and five Shaper Hubs based in Sub-saharan Africa to provide financial education to female college students. Long term, our visión is to expand future phases of this impact to include a focus on other foreign nationals in Houston and tackle a broader set of issues affecting women in Houston and corresponding foreign geographies. Our project is impact-driven with accountability measures and learning, worksheets, savings challenges, debt reduction challenges, creating a persona financial plan, etc. A digital platform that was created with a mission to enable women to develop a solid financial foundation and become financially independent

Available Metrics:

Collaborators:

Femme Minty and five Shaper Hubs based in Sub-saharan Africa