Source:Naa Shika Caesar

The government has submitted an application to the Bank of Ghana for a banking licence for the proposed Women’s Development Bank, marking a major step towards operationalising the institution.Ghana News Website

Vice President Professor Jane Naana Opoku-Agyemang disclosed this at the 15th Ghana Economic Forum (GEF 2026), saying a committee tasked with developing the bank had completed its work and submitted the application for regulatory consideration.

Professor Jane Naana Opoku-Agyemang

She said the committee brought together market women, susu collectors, representatives of women’s business associations, financial sector professionals and other stakeholders to ensure the institution reflects the needs of its intended beneficiaries.

“My conviction has always been that an institution established to serve women must be shaped by the experiences, aspirations and everyday realities of those very women,” she said.

Professor Opoku-Agyemang said the bank is being designed as a last-mile financial institution to bring banking services closer to women entrepreneurs, particularly those whose businesses sustain markets and local economies.

“This bank is not meant to be just another financial institution. It is conceived as a last-mile bank designed to bring financial services closer to the women whose enterprise and hard work sustain our markets and local economies,” she stated.

The proposed institution is expected to expand access to financial services for women, particularly market traders and small-scale business owners who face challenges accessing formal financing.

The Vice President made the remarks at the forum, held under the theme: “From Stabilization to Scale: Mobilizing Capital, Technology, and Policy for Ghana’s Next Industrial Wave