Digital Financial Inclusion and Women Economic Empowerment: A Review of Emerging trends, Challenges and Research Gaps

  • Unique Paper ID: 204334
  • Volume: 13
  • Issue: 1
  • PageNo: 2244-2248
  • Abstract:
  • This review article examines the existing body of literature on financial inclusion, digital financial inclusion, and women’s economic empowerment across diverse national and international contexts. The study synthesizes findings from empirical and conceptual research conducted in India, Sri Lanka, Pakistan, China, Nigeria, Ethiopia, Iraq, Cameroon, and other developing economies. The review highlights that financial inclusion contributes significantly to women’s empowerment by improving access to credit, savings, investment opportunities, income generation, asset ownership, and financial decision-making capabilities. Furthermore, digital financial inclusion has demonstrated substantial potential in overcoming geographical and institutional barriers that traditionally restricted women’s participation in formal financial systems. The analysis reveals that financial literacy and digital literacy play a crucial mediating role in determining the effectiveness of financial inclusion initiatives. The literature also identifies persistent challenges such as inadequate technological infrastructure, limited digital competence, cybersecurity concerns, low awareness levels, cultural constraints, and gender-based inequalities. Despite extensive research on financial inclusion and women’s empowerment, significant gaps remain regarding the integrated examination of digital financial inclusion, financial literacy, and multidimensional empowerment outcomes, particularly in developing regions.

Copyright & License

Copyright © 2026 Authors retain the copyright of this article. This article is an open access article distributed under the Creative Commons Attribution License which permits unrestricted use, distribution, and reproduction in any medium, provided the original work is properly cited.

BibTeX

@article{204334,
        author = {R.Gayathri},
        title = {Digital Financial Inclusion and Women Economic Empowerment: A Review of Emerging trends, Challenges and Research Gaps},
        journal = {International Journal of Innovative Research in Technology},
        year = {2026},
        volume = {13},
        number = {1},
        pages = {2244-2248},
        issn = {2349-6002},
        url = {https://ijirt.org/article?manuscript=204334},
        abstract = {This review article examines the existing body of literature on financial inclusion, digital financial inclusion, and women’s economic empowerment across diverse national and international contexts. The study synthesizes findings from empirical and conceptual research conducted in India, Sri Lanka, Pakistan, China, Nigeria, Ethiopia, Iraq, Cameroon, and other developing economies. The review highlights that financial inclusion contributes significantly to women’s empowerment by improving access to credit, savings, investment opportunities, income generation, asset ownership, and financial decision-making capabilities. Furthermore, digital financial inclusion has demonstrated substantial potential in overcoming geographical and institutional barriers that traditionally restricted women’s participation in formal financial systems.
The analysis reveals that financial literacy and digital literacy play a crucial mediating role in determining the effectiveness of financial inclusion initiatives. The literature also identifies persistent challenges such as inadequate technological infrastructure, limited digital competence, cybersecurity concerns, low awareness levels, cultural constraints, and gender-based inequalities. Despite extensive research on financial inclusion and women’s empowerment, significant gaps remain regarding the integrated examination of digital financial inclusion, financial literacy, and multidimensional empowerment outcomes, particularly in developing regions.},
        keywords = {Digital Financial Inclusion, Financial Inclusion, Women’s Economic Empowerment, Financial Literacy, Digital Literacy, FinTech, Gender Equality, Sustainable Development.},
        month = {June},
        }

Cite This Article

R.Gayathri, (2026). Digital Financial Inclusion and Women Economic Empowerment: A Review of Emerging trends, Challenges and Research Gaps. International Journal of Innovative Research in Technology (IJIRT), 13(1), 2244–2248.

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