Turning research into practice

Women’s Entrepreneurship and Financial Inclusion

Advancing women’s entrepreneurship and financial inclusion

My research explores how financial inclusion can improve the lives of low-income women by enabling them to pursue entrepreneurial opportunities, strengthen their financial independence, and improve their economic well-being. While access to financial services is important, my research shows that access alone is often insufficient. Behavioural barriers, social norms, and unequal household decision-making can prevent women from using financial resources effectively.

Over the years, I have developed a research programme examining how these barriers influence women’s entrepreneurial intentions, decisions, and actions. A central focus of my work is understanding why some women are able to translate access to finance into meaningful economic opportunities while others remain constrained. Drawing on field studies, behavioural experiments, and randomised controlled trials, my colleagues and I have developed and tested practical approaches to address these challenges.

MalaysiaBuilding entrepreneurial self-efficacy with Amanah Ikhtiar Malaysia

I collaborated with Amanah Ikhtiar Malaysia, a leading microfinance organisation, to develop behavioural training aimed at strengthening entrepreneurial self-efficacy among low-income women. Our research informed changes to the organisation’s entrepreneurship training and coaching practices, helping women build the confidence and capabilities needed to pursue entrepreneurial activities.

IndonesiaNarrative-based behaviour change with Kasir Pintar

I partnered with Kasir Pintar, a financial technology company serving small businesses, to develop narrative-based Behaviour Change Communication interventions for women entrepreneurs. These interventions addressed behavioural and social barriers to entrepreneurship, including entrepreneurial confidence, household support, and financial decision-making. Our evaluations found encouraging improvements in entrepreneurial mindset, self-efficacy, technology adoption, and household support.

BangladeshTogether We Decide, with SKS Foundation and Jago Nari

I worked with SKS Foundation and Jago Nari, two microfinance organisations, to develop Together We Decide, a couples-based Behaviour Change Communication programme. Recognising that women’s financial decisions are often shaped by household relationships, we designed the intervention to encourage constructive communication, joint financial decision-making, and greater recognition of women’s financial agency. The partner organisations adopted the programme, with initial evidence suggesting improvements in women’s participation in household financial decisions and communication between spouses.

Across these initiatives, I have worked closely with microfinance organisations, financial technology providers, and local communities to translate research findings into practical, contextually relevant interventions. Rather than focusing solely on expanding access to finance, my work seeks to address the behavioural and social conditions that determine whether financial inclusion translates into meaningful opportunities.

The broader goal is to move beyond financial access towards financial agency — enabling low-income women to make informed financial decisions, pursue entrepreneurial opportunities, and improve their economic well-being.

Disability-Inclusive Banking

From research to national policy adoption

My research aims to make banking services more accessible and inclusive for persons with disabilities by equipping banking professionals with the knowledge, skills, and attitudes needed to better understand and respond to their needs.

Building on my research identifying persistent physical, digital, communication, and attitudinal barriers to financial inclusion, I engaged central banks, financial regulators, banks, and microfinance institutions in Fiji, Bangladesh, and Indonesia.

In 2024, our research attracted the attention of Prime Bank PLC in Bangladesh, leading to discussions with its senior leadership. Together, we identified attitudinal barriers among banking professionals as a critical gap requiring intervention. I subsequently brought together Prime Bank and Team Inclusion Bangladesh Foundation (TIBF), an organisation representing persons with disabilities, to co-design Breaking Attitudinal Barriers: Inclusive Banking for Persons with Disabilities, a Behaviour Change Communication (BCC) programme. Piloted at Prime Bank in May 2025, the programme demonstrated substantial improvements in participants’ self-reported knowledge and confidence in serving customers with disabilities.

IndonesiaScaling through a Training of Trainers model

To extend the initiative beyond individual institutions, we developed a scalable Training of Trainers (ToT) model. Our first international ToT programme was delivered at Institut Teknologi Sepuluh Nopember (ITS), Surabaya, Indonesia, in October 2026, involving banking and microfinance professionals, regulators, and disability-sector representatives. The evaluation found significant improvements in participants’ knowledge of disability inclusion, confidence in facilitating training, and perceived readiness to deliver training independently. These encouraging findings provide an initial foundation for expanding the programme through locally trained facilitators.

BangladeshNational adoption by Bangladesh Bank

The project’s most significant policy outcome emerged in Bangladesh. In April 2026, I presented our research findings and proposed ToT model to senior officials of Bangladesh Bank’s Financial Inclusion Department, alongside representatives from Prime Bank and TIBF. Following further consultations involving commercial banks and disability organisations, Bangladesh Bank formally decided in October 2026 to implement our ToT programme nationally, beginning in November 2026. Under the Lead Bank Model, the initiative aims to build institutional training capacity across Bangladesh’s banking sector.

Pathway to national adoption

1. 2024 Research on barriers to disability-inclusive finance draws the attention of Prime Bank PLC. Discussions with senior leadership identify attitudinal barriers among banking professionals as the critical gap.
2. May 2025 Breaking Attitudinal Barriers, co-designed with Prime Bank and Team Inclusion Bangladesh Foundation, is piloted at Prime Bank.
3. April 2026 Findings and the proposed Training of Trainers model are presented to Bangladesh Bank’s Financial Inclusion Department.
4. October 2026 The first international Training of Trainers programme is delivered at ITS, Surabaya, Indonesia.
5. October 2026 Bangladesh Bank formally decides to implement the Training of Trainers programme nationally.
6. From November 2026 National rollout begins under the Lead Bank Model, with a target of reaching all 61 banks by the end of 2027.