On Thursday, the Director General of Bank Al-Maghrib, Abderrahim Bouazza, signed a Declaration of Intent to launch the WE Finance Code, an initiative to support women entrepreneurs. The agreement was signed in partnership with the European Bank for Reconstruction and Development (EBRD) and the International Finance Corporation (IFC). The signing ceremony was attended by EBRD Vice President Mark Bowman, EBRD Managing Director for the Southern and Eastern Mediterranean region Mark Davis, and several senior officials from both the EBRD and Bank Al-Maghrib. In a press release, Bank Al-Maghrib explained that this initiative aligns with the institution's broader goals of promoting financial inclusion and women's economic empowerment. It also builds on the bank's long-standing collaboration with both the EBRD and IFC. The initiative further draws on the significant progress Bank Al-Maghrib has made in collecting and analyzing gender-disaggregated data within the financial sector. The WE Finance Code aims to improve access to finance for women-led micro, small, and medium-sized enterprises (MSMEs), while also providing technical support to financial service providers to strengthen their ability to meet the needs of this vital segment of Morocco's economy. «The launch of the WE Finance Code reflects our firm commitment to advancing women's financial inclusion in Morocco», said Bouazza, as quoted in the statement. He also expressed his desire to deepen fruitful cooperation with the EBRD, IFC, other international institutions, and key stakeholders to maximize the impact of the initiative and achieve its objectives.
