International Women’s Day is celebrated across the world on March 8 every year to recognize and celebrate women’s achievements. It also serves to commemorate the arduous journey to secure equal opportunities for women and the collective efforts of activists, feminists, allies, and women as a whole March is considered Women’s History Month, and is the perfect opportunity to retrospect about how the women’s rights movement has unfolded over time, and what can be done to promote gender equality further.
Many different channels have been created to spread awareness about the history of International Women’s Day and the internationalwomensday.com platform is one such means. It was developed in 2001 to rekindle interest in the day, honour women’s accomplishments, and continue to advocate for gender equality. Each year, the platform publishes a theme focused on a particular aspect of the larger mission, spreading awareness and affecting positive change to support women. Women’s Day 2024’s theme is “Inspire Inclusion”, which highlights the importance of valuing and empowering women, and also inspiring others to drive inclusion at various levels. It acknowledges the fact that driving the second level of inclusion through inspiration is the next step in furthering the cause of gender parity and women’s well-being.
The United Nations has its own IWD each year, and this year it’s “Invest in women: Accelerate progress”, focusing on the fifth sustainable development goal (SDG) of achieving gender equality and empowering all women and girls by 2030. This resonates strongly with Kinara Capital’s outlook towards supporting women through investments in multiple avenues: capital access, financial inclusion, and financial literacy.
Aligned with this ethos, the United Nations has designated “Invest in women: Accelerate progress” as the theme for International Women’s Day 2024. This theme highlights the urgent need to prioritize investments in women’s welfare and advancement to accelerate the achievement of the UN’s Sustainable Development Goal of gender equality and the empowerment of all women and girls by 2030. This mission resonates strongly with the objectives of Kinara Capital. Kinara invests in driving gender parity and inclusion both as an.
Women’s Day is a very significant occasion at Kinara Capital. Kinara is a socially responsible company dedicated to advancing gender parity. With a commitment to dismantling barriers that hinder women’s economic participation and advancement, Kinara considers inclusivity to be one of its core values. The fintech has been dedicated to driving gender parity since day one. As an organization, Kinara has built an equal-opportunity workplace that welcomes people of all gender identities and focuses on helping women and members of the LGBTQ+ community thrive. On Women’s Day, Kinara holds various engagement activities and awareness programs to mark the occasion and pledge its commitment to the cause of driving gender parity both as an employer, and as a list-mile fintech lender.
Kinara has made strides towards achieving a balanced gender ratio. Inclusivity is a core value that we uphold by actively working to eliminate any unconscious bias related to age, experience, religion, background, gender, or disability. Instead of relying solely on interview performance, Kinara goes a step ahead and analyzes data to gain insights into factors that can reduce candidate dropout. They focus on understanding parameters such as integrity, commitment, accountability, teamwork, and cultural fit. By prioritizing data-driven decision-making, Kinara has been able to significantly speed up our hiring process and bring on board a diverse and suitable talent pool. Women employees at Kinara are given extensive mentorship and support to thrive at the workplace and advance in their careers. With a women-majority management team, Kinara is setting a positive example for the BFSI industry in India, which has traditionally been considered “male-dominated”.
Kinara Capital has a unique loan program aimed at women MSME entrepreneurs named HerVikas. Under it, women entrepreneurs are given an upfront discount on collateral-free business loans to help them advance their business growth and realize their aspirations. By facilitating access to capital, Kinara empowers women entrepreneurs to actualize their business ambitions, fostering financial inclusion and growth, which they would otherwise have been deprived of. The second level of impact and “inspiring inclusion” is achieved when these women entrepreneurs create incremental income and jobs in their local economies. Most of these jobs go to other women, opening doors for them, and supporting them in becoming financially self-sufficient. Kinara had earmarked over INR 700 crores and has achieved more than 90% of the commitment. The program has led to a rise in income generated by women entrepreneurs and enabled them to support 31,000+ jobs in local economies.
Kinara recognizes that financial literacy is also a powerful tool for empowering women to make informed financial decisions and navigate the financial landscape. With the aim of creating an ecosystem that enables women MSME entrepreneurs to reach their full potential, the company organizes informative and educational value-added sessions called ‘Grow with Kinara’. A free virtual workshop is conducted in 5 regional languages covering knowledge and skills necessary to manage business finances effectively. This successfully enhances the ability of women entrepreneurs to seize opportunities and drive socioeconomic advancement.
By championing investments in women and amplifying their voices, Kinara Capital drives tangible progress towards gender equality and catalyzes broader societal transformation. The ripple effects of these efforts extend well beyond individual empowerment, facilitating inclusive economic growth and sustainable development at the last mile. Kinara has exemplified the transformative power of investing in women as catalysts for progress and will continue investing in initiatives aimed at furthering the cause. As we celebrate International Women’s Day in 2024, let us vow to do our part to Inspire Inclusion, spreading the word about what a transformative change this can bring about. Through collective action and unwavering commitment, we can inspire inclusion, drive meaningful change, and pave the way towards a future where gender equality is not just an aspiration but a lived reality.
