Mobilink Bank, in strategic partnership with the CARE Strive Women program supported by Mastercard Strive, is hosting an interactive digital session focused on overcoming systemic barriers in financial inclusion and microfinance for women entrepreneurs across Pakistan. Featuring Khowla Shoaib, Head of Strategy and Sustainability at Mobilink Bank, the upcoming session addresses why conventional financial products frequently see low adoption among female-led micro-enterprises despite growing market demand. Rather than relying on traditional market surveys, the initiative highlights the necessity of uncovering institutional blind spots to design tailored financial solutions that directly address the lived realities of women business owners.
A central insight emerging from the Strive Women implementation initiative indicates that the primary obstacle to gathering meaningful market intelligence often resides within internal institutional assumptions rather than external market dynamics. Conventional banking metrics frequently interpret stagnant loan growth or lower borrowing limits among women entrepreneurs as a lack of business capacity or risk aversion. However, deeper qualitative research reveals that what appears to be a client-side limitation is often an internal product design flaw. Standard field research methodologies frequently fail to capture these subtle structural barriers, leading financial institutions to misdiagnose customer needs and underaddress viable market segments.
To address these research and product design challenges directly, Mobilink Bank and CARE Strive Women are conducting a specialized live Tool Clinic designed for financial sector practitioners, researchers, and microfinance leaders. The 30-minute interactive walkthrough focuses on practical tools, real-world case studies, and field-tested strategies used to navigate institutional barriers in Pakistan microfinance sector. By pushing past surface-level data, the collaborative initiative aims to equip banking teams with actionable frameworks to identify internal biases, refine field engagement techniques, and intentionally build financial products that facilitate sustainable business growth for women entrepreneurs.
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