NextBillion - A WDI Publication

A room curated for scalers — women founders with paying customers, ready to raise funding, expand, or launch into new markets. 100seats for scalers. Maximum capacity for summit is 200.

You’re a Scaler and this summit if right for you if:
• You’re a founder or co-founder and identify as a woman AND
• You have paying customers or users or very significant number of users
• You’re raising a substantial round now (1M-5M+), or planning to raise a significant growth round within the next 12 months (can be pre-seed to Series A, depending on the sector)
OR
• You have product market fit in one market and now expanding to new geographical markets

This summit is NOT the right fit for you if:
You are very early stage founders at ideation or startup phase with no product-market fit, looking to come and learn and start speaking to investors.

Not a Founder? Find your ticket
All prices are Early Bird and include French VAT at 20%. Bringing 5 or more people? Delegation rates start at 20% off →

UNDP and Generali are launching an MSME-focused Insurance Innovation Challenge in India to support the scaling of insurance products and solutions that are accessible, affordable, and relevant for MSMEs and their workers. Join this information webinar to learn more about the Challenge, including the eligibility criteria, priority areas, application process, and key requirements. The session will also provide an opportunity to ask questions and seek clarification on the Challenge and application process.

Time: 4:00 – 6:00 IST

Women-owned and led SMEs (WSMEs) are important drivers of innovation, job creation, and economic growth, yet many continue to face barriers to accessing the capital needed to scale. Business accelerators and investment readiness programs can help entrepreneurs strengthen their business models, expand professional networks, engage with investors, and build their capacity to attract and secure investment. Yet women entrepreneurs remain underrepresented in these programs. An analysis of more than 300 accelerator programs found that only 13 percent of founding teams were composed entirely of women, compared with 52 percent composed entirely of men. Moreover, participation in accelerators does not necessarily translate into improved access to finance, underscoring the need for more intentional approaches to helping women entrepreneurs secure investment.

The webinar will bring together practitioners and experts to discuss emerging evidence and practical lessons from implementing business accelerators and investment readiness programs for women entrepreneurs. The discussion will explore what works, where implementation challenges persist, and how programs can be strengthened. It will also share key insights from a new We-Fi note on the topic, drawing on lessons learned from We-Fi-supported initiatives.

Time: 9:00 -10:00 am ET 

In 2025, Adolescents 360 (A360) marked a decade of listening to girls and putting their voices, aspirations, and lived experiences at the center of adolescent-responsive programming.

Over 10 years, A360 has evolved from testing girl-centered innovations to generating evidence, adapting approaches, reaching scale, and working with governments to strengthen and institutionalize adolescent-responsive programming.

Join us for a special thought leadership conversation bringing together young people, government partners, implementers, and funders to reflect on a decade of experience and what it can teach us about the future of adolescent health.

We’ll explore what worked, what changed, and what did not work as expected; the lessons that challenged our assumptions; and what it takes to listen meaningfully, adapt as programs grow, scale without losing responsiveness, and build approaches that can last beyond individual projects and funding cycles.

At the heart of the conversation is a simple question:
What does a decade of listening to girls teach us about designing health programs that can adapt, scale, and create lasting change?

Time: 08:00 AM ET

Digitalisation is transforming the way renewable electricity is generated, managed, distributed and consumed. As renewable energy systems become increasingly interconnected, digital technologies are essential to improving system performance, enabling flexibility and accelerating the transition towards a more efficient, resilient and renewable-based energy system. Software, data and connectivity are unlocking new opportunities across the electrification value chain.

Advanced analytics, artificial intelligence (AI) and the Internet of Things (IoT) are transforming renewable energy across Energy Access and Productive Use of Energy (PURE), Commercial and Industrial (C&I) Electrification, and Grid & Utility. Digital technologies improve energy management, system performance and reliability, supporting decentralised renewable energy and productive-use applications, optimising energy generation and consumption in commercial and industrial facilities, and enhancing grid monitoring, stability and renewable energy integration. Across all three strategic pillars of the Alliance for Renewable Electrification (ARE), digitalisation enables predictive maintenance, greater flexibility and data-driven decision-making, helping reduce operational costs and deliver more reliable, efficient and affordable electricity services.

In this context, ARE continues to promote innovation and collaboration across the renewable electrification sector through its Innovation for Electrification (I4E) webinar series. The upcoming edition, “Software, Digitalisation and Optimisation,” will explore how ARE Members are developing and deploying innovative digital technologies to improve the performance, flexibility and scalability of renewable electricity systems.

Join us to discover pioneering products, services and software applications that are reshaping renewable electrification, and explore how digital innovation can unlock the full potential of renewable energy and accelerate the transition towards a sustainable and renewable-powered future.

Time: 9:00 AM – 10:30 AM EDT

​FMO’s new report on Gender-Diverse Leadership says the case for gender-diverse leadership is made, and the challenge now is making it happen.

​Join Giulia Corinaldi (CoriConsulting) and Value for Women for a 45-min show-and-tell on what’s working in practice. You’ll hear real examples on Board/IC composition, the wider foundations needed to advance on gender inclusion and 2X, and where to start.

Time: 8:00 – 8:45 EST

Last year, 760 attendees called in online and attended in person for IF25.

In 2026, we’re excited to welcome you once more to one of the world’s leading gatherings in financial inclusion!

Formerly known as European Microfinance Week (EMW), the event has over two decades evolved to become a core international event, gathering experts from around the world and mapping out the future of the industry.

The IF26 agenda will feature topics from previous years (gender finance and green and climate finance), sector trends identified in e-MFP’s Financial Inclusion Compass 2026 (changing funding landscape and emerging technologies like AI) and the theme of this year’s Luxembourg Award for Inclusive Finance, youth-inclusive finance.

What’s next?

Sponsorship:

Explore the sponsorship packages available here and find out how you can best showcase your association while becoming part a core part of IF26.

Would you like to support IF26? Reach out to Maria (molle@e-mfp.eu).

Registration

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