New Zealand Aid interviews Mary Ellen Iskenderian

July 2, 2013

CEO and President of Women’s World Banking visited the Ministry of Foreign Affairs to talk about microfinance before attending Women’s World Banking‘s upcoming conference in Auckland. The conference will focus on building sustainable microfinance for women in the Pacific and training Pacific microfinance leaders through exchange with global experts.

What are you hoping to achieve at the conference in Auckland?
We’re delighted with the level of interest from people from across the Pacific region – from For-profit organisations, NGOs, microfinance organisations, and regulators, to some of the mainstream banks. It will be a great opportunity for the finance industry in the Pacific to share what’s working and what’s not working with experts from our global network.

We’ve tried to pick important topics that are challenging globally but have particular resonance here in the Pacific – issues such as whether technology can speed up and make easier the delivery of services. I know that human resources development and capacity are real challenges in the Pacific and we’ve got some fantastic people to talk about human resource policies. Being Women’s World Banking, we’re particularly focused on how you present a business case for women and why providing access to financial services to women is both very important to development but can also be a good source of business in a sustainable way for financial institutions.

Click on the link below to read the rest of the interview on the New Zealand Aid website: Interview with Mary Ellen Iskenderian, CEO of Women’s World Banking