Discussions about gender equality must include older women, and improving women’s well-being must also mean guaranteeing equal opportunities for older women.
Population aging is a global trend that particularly impacts women, who comprise the majority of older persons, and Latin America and the Caribbean is one of the fastest aging geographic regions. Because women live longer than men, they often experience greater economic and social vulnerability in old age: according to the United Nations Economic Commission for Latin America and the Caribbean, women aged 65 and over have higher levels of poverty than men despite receiving pensions, and 70.3% of the women who do not receive any kind of pension have income of their own that is below the poverty line.
Given this scenario, the “silver economy” is now in the spotlight, a term that refers to the products and services that meet the specific needs of people over the age of 50. Applying a gender lens to the issue of population aging opens the door for women to remain active in the labor market, access appropriate financial products, and strengthen their independence. However, widening inequality gaps and increasing unpaid care work in the home represent challenges for older women.
Silver Women: Economic Autonomy for Older Women
More than 370,000 women over the age of 65 in Bolivia are impacted by issues that prevent their full development, such as a lack of digital and financial education tools that facilitate their effective integration into today’s society (World Bank).
In recognition of these challenges, Pro Mujer, with support from Finanzas Plateadas, is launching the Mujeres Plateadas project, an innovative initiative that seeks to strengthen the skills and economic autonomy of older women between the ages of 60 and 70 in Bolivia. The initiative focuses on promoting the financial and digital inclusion of this age group, providing them with tools to access and use financial services, such as savings accounts and digital banking.
Through digital and financial literacy initiatives, the project ensures that participants are not only able to open savings accounts but can also manage them independently, thus reducing women’s exclusion and economic dependence. This personalized training allows older adults to feel more confident using financial technologies, a key factor in improving their quality of life and economic security.
As part of the project’s focus on comprehensively addressing different dimensions of financial and digital inclusion, we will also provide guidance to older entrepreneurs and strengthen Pro Mujer’s financial products to be more inclusive of older women, among other initiatives.
Mujeres Plateadas is expected to directly impact more than 1,000 older women over the next 18 months.
Strengthening the skills and financial inclusion of older women not only improves their economic well-being, but also encourages their active participation in society. The silver economy has the potential to become a core contributor to closing inequality gaps and ensuring that all people are able to age with dignity and opportunities. Projects such as Mujeres Plateadas contribute to a future where all women, regardless of their age, have access to the resources and tools they need to live safely and independently.
About Pro Mujer
Pro Mujer is a non-profit social enterprise that has provided services and tools to women in Latin America for over 35 years so they can reach their full potential, improve their living conditions, and become agents of change in their communities.
Using a holistic and integrated model, Pro Mujer seeks to expand women’s access of women to health services, increase their financial inclusion, and provide them with training opportunities.
Pro Mujer is a pioneer in the region in promoting and raising awareness about gender lens investing as an effective mechanism to close gender gaps and boost productivity.
More information is available at www.promujer.org.
