Nepal Rings the Bell for Women’s Empowerment through Financial Inclusion

[Joint Press Release]

Keynote speakers ring the bell to symbolize their commitment to women’s empowerment through financial inclusion. Photo: UN Women/Srijana Bhatta

Lalitpur, Nepal — To reaffirm Nepal’s commitment to gender-inclusive financial policies in the context of International Women’s Day 2025, UN Women, Global Compact Nepal (GCN), International Finance Corporation (IFC), and Nepal Stock Exchange (NEPSE), with support from the Government of Finland and the European Union, jointly organized the Ring the Bell for Gender Equality event on Thursday, 20 March 2025, in Lalitpur, Nepal.

The event brought together leaders from finance, business, and development sectors to promote gender-inclusive financial policies and showcase Women's Empowerment Principles (WEPs) as a framework to drive business success.

As part of a global initiative, Ring the Bell takes place in over 110 stock exchanges worldwide, advocating for WEPs and equal opportunities for women in the workforce, economy, and capital markets. Nepal has been part of this movement since 2021.

This year, under the theme Ring the Bell for Women’s Financial Inclusion in Nepal, speakers, panelists, and participants highlighted strategies, challenges, and way forward for women’s economic empowerment. A high-level panel discussion moderated by Saloni Sethia, Managing Director, Vie Tec focused on Breaking Barriers: Advancing Financial Inclusion for Women with the panelists Aarya Joshi, Director of Nepal Rastra Bank, Prativa Pandey, Founder of Herveda Botanicals, Ashish Dhakal, Deputy CEO, of Global Equity Fund, and Cecile Riviere, Programme Manager of the Embassy of Switzerland.

Welcoming all the participants to the event, Patricia Fernandez-Pacheco, Country Representative, of UN Women, delivered her opening remarks. Ms. Pacheco reminded that as Nepal rings the bell for the fourth consecutive year for gender equality, it is not just a symbolic gesture but a strategic moment to unite and advance the critical agenda of women's financial inclusion. "It is important to address systemic barriers and support women in finance because it is not just about fairness, it's about unlocking growth, innovation and opportunity for all. Women across Nepal and in the world are taking bold steps despite massive challenges, but they should not do it alone so let us create a world where every woman has the financial power to build her own dreams," Pacheco said.

Her remarks were followed by the Ring the Bell Ceremony for Gender Equality and Financial Inclusion. The ringing of the bell is a symbolic pledge to drive progress on gender equality and financial inclusion.

In a special address, Shovakanta Paudel, Joint Secretary, Ministry of Finance and Chairperson of Nepal Stock Exchange shared insights from both the stock exchange and the Ministry of Finance perspective on how women face difficulties in the finance sector. Paudel said, “While Nepal has made good progress in political inclusion, it must also do more to increase women's inclusion in finance. We have to address technology, finance, business, and literacy all together to increase women's participation in the banking and credit sector and their economic opportunities."

Her Excellency Riina-Riikka Heikka, Ambassador of Finland delivering the keynote address, renewed Finland's commitment to supporting Nepal in its growth and talked about the role that Nepal's women entrepreneurs are playing during its pivotal transition while it graduates from Least Developing Countries (LDC). She stated, "Finland is dedicated to advancing gender equality by supporting women entrepreneurs, closing the digital divide, and promoting inclusive financial systems in Nepal. Together, with strong partnerships and accelerated action, we can create a more equal and prosperous future for all.”

The event further showcased Women’s Empowerment Principles (WEPs) in action. Established by UN Women and UN Global Compact, WEPs are a set of principles offering guidance to businesses on how to advance gender equality and women’s empowerment in the workplace, marketplace, and community. Anisha Karna, Board Member of the UN Global Compact Nepal presented insights from WEPs Peer Learning Workshops, followed by a video highlighting the reflections of the companies who attended these 6 months long sessions. This was followed by Mehtap Tatar’s intervention, Deputy Representative UN Women, where she highlighted how implementing WEPs not only fosters workplace equality but also drives profitability, innovation and long-term sustainability. She shared some good examples of WEPs implementation and the key resources for companies, including the WEPs AI tool.

Likewise, Nirmal Dahal, Country Officer of the International Finance Corporation (IFC) highlighted IFC’s private sector initiatives to create jobs and entrepreneurial opportunities for women. He said, “Through the Women on Boards and in Business Leadership programme we are working with exchanges, securities regulators, and issuers, to break down barriers and grow the pipeline of women in decision-making positions-thereby making impactful changes.”

To encourage businesses to adopt WEPs, last year the WEPs Award Ceremony was organized at the Asia-Pacific regional level which also recognized NMB Bank for its outstanding efforts in advancing gender inclusion. Sunil KC, CEO, and Pranisha Shrestha GESI Initiative Lead of NMB bank jointly received the award from the UN Women Nepal office during this event.

The event concluded with closing remarks by Her Excellency Veronique Lorenzo, Ambassador of the European Union. Reiterating the importance of women's economic empowerment, the Ambassador said, " The European Union is ready to work with private sector and women towards gender parity in the formal economy."

The Ring the Bell initiative continues to promote WEPs, inspire policy reforms, and drive real change, ensuring women’s equal access to financial opportunities and participation in Nepal’s economic growth.

For more information on the Ring the Bell for Gender Equality 2025 in Nepal, watch a full recording of the event on: UN Women Nepal Facebook