Introducing HerVenture’s new learning track on mobile money

We are so excited to launch HerVenture’s newest learning track on mobile money, in collaboration with GTT and ActionINVEST Caribbean Inc!  

Launched today in Guyana, users of our award-winning mobile learning app will be able to learn how mobile money, an emerging payment method, could benefit them and their business, and build skills in using it. 

Mobile money is an electronic wallet which allows users to store, send and receive money using just their mobile phone. In many of the countries we work in it’s becoming increasingly popular; there are 188 million active users in Africa, 70 million in South Asia, and 20 million in Latin America and the Caribbean. 

In these countries, many women entrepreneurs, their customers, and families will already be encountering mobile money. The aim of this new track is to show women entrepreneurs how they can leverage it to reach more customers and make their business more efficient and profitable.  

HerVenture is designed for women entrepreneurs in the start–up or growth phase of their business. Mobile money provides an opportunity for these women, many of whom may not have easy access to a bank account, to transfer, receive and save money necessary for starting  their business. 

It is also useful for existing business owners to expand their customer base, for both in-store and online shopping. Offering mobile money as a payment option, which is more accessible than bank accounts, allows more customers to access and buy their products or services.  

Mobile money enables increased efficiency, and therefore profitability, of a business, by simplifying transactions, reducing time spent visiting a bank, and removing the potential risks of carrying and paying by cash.   

We learned from our partners in Guyana, telecom company GTT and their mobile money branch, MMG, that despite the opportunities mobile money presents, use by women entrepreneurs is currently very limited. In fact, the quickest adopters of mobile money have tended to be educated men who live in an urban area.  

Alongside GTT and ActionINVEST Caribbean Inc, we recognised a need to engage more women with this emerging payment form, and together developed a new learning track for our HerVenture app. The aim of this new track is to inspire women entrepreneurs living in urban areas, but also those in rural areas who have less access to traditional bank accounts, to utilise mobile money for their personal and professional lives. The app can be downloaded for free from the Google Play Store or App Store. 

After surveying women entrepreneurs or budding entrepreneurs in Guyana, it became apparent that there was an interest in using mobile money, but that there was a need to increase knowledge of how it works, particularly around security and efficiency. The track contains accessible, fun content that gives a foundational understanding of how mobile money works and how to develop a strategy for using it for your business.  

With nearly 4,000 in Guyana already using HerVenture to develop their business skills, we know the huge potential the new track has to increase women’s mobile money usage in Guyana, and ultimately to boost their businesses.  

Once adopted, women mobile money users indicate that it supports them to monitor their finances more easily and save money, giving them more financial autonomy and independence. Similarly, if more women start using mobile money, then this is a great way to engage more female customers. All in all, an increased uptake in mobile money by women entrepreneurs increases their economic empowerment and supports them to reach their full potential.  

The track is currently only available in Guyana, but we hope to roll it out to other countries in the future through impactful funding partnerships with companies and institutions.  

Thank you to GTT and ActionINVEST Caribbean Inc for your continued support and investment in women entrepreneurs.