Sara Wolelaw, a diplomat at Ethiopia’s Ministry of Foreign Affairs, initially believed the national Digital Financial Literacy campaign was intended mainly for entrepreneurs and tech professionals, but after participating, she gained confidence in using digital payments, mobile money, and other financial tools and now actively encourages other women in her ministry to adopt them. She is among 525 participants from 26 public institutions who joined a nationwide three-day campaign led by Ethiopia’s Ministry of Innovation and Technology (MInT) with support from UNCDF, under the broader Digital Literacy for Financial Services and the Future of Work in Ethiopia programme funded by the European Union and the Organisation of African, Caribbean and Pacific States.
The initiative is designed to address Ethiopia’s persistent gender gap in financial inclusion, where women remain significantly less likely than men to access formal financial services. Limited access to digital tools, low financial literacy, and social barriers continue to restrict women’s participation in savings, credit, and investment opportunities. To address this, UNCDF, MInT, and the National Bank of Ethiopia adopted a market-focused approach that goes beyond basic training, aiming to build long-term digital financial capability among women in public institutions who can also influence broader institutional change.
The campaign combined practical training with real-world financial services by partnering with telecom providers and banks such as Ethio Telecom, Safaricom, Commercial Bank of Ethiopia, Dashen Bank, and Wegagen Bank, helping participants move from awareness to active usage of digital financial tools. It also emphasized security, fraud prevention, and women-focused financial products. By targeting women in the public sector, the programme seeks to strengthen both individual capability and institutional adoption of digital finance, creating ripple effects across government systems.
Beyond individual empowerment, the initiative is expected to expand financial inclusion, create new customer segments for service providers, and support Ethiopia’s broader digital transformation goals. Experts highlight that integrating digital financial literacy into public training systems and national curricula will be key to sustaining impact, ensuring women are not only users but also active contributors to Ethiopia’s evolving digital economy.
