Participative loans to digital women entrepreneurs
ENISA (Empresa Nacional de Innovación, S.A.)
Theme: Promoting women entrepreneurship in digital
Phase and Stage: LEADERSHIP – Senior career
Action: Investment and funding
Beneficiaries: Private companies; Women only
Users: Policy makers
THE CHALLENGE
The main challenge addressed by this initiative was the low representation of women in digital entrepreneurship in Spain. Despite advances in gender equality, only about 20% of startups in Spain are led by women, and even fewer in the high-tech and digital sectors. This reflects a gender-based digital divide and unequal access to funding and support. The program was created in response to this structural inequality, which not only limits economic opportunities for women but also stifles the broader potential for innovation and inclusive economic growth in Spain.
OUR SOLUTION
To overcome this challenge, ENISA launched the Emprendedoras Digitales line of financing in 2021, allocating 51 million euros from the Spanish Recovery and Resilience Plan, aligned with the EU’s Next Generation funds. The programme offers participative loans ranging from €25,000 to €1.5 million, with flexible repayment conditions and no need for collateral. The eligibility criteria require that the company be led or majority-owned by women and that the business project has a strong digital and innovative component. The approach aims to remove traditional financial barriers while actively promoting female leadership in high-growth sectors.
OUTCOMES
Since its launch, the programme has yielded concrete and measurable results. By early 2024, more than 240 projects led by women had been funded through this line, contributing to the mobilization of over €50 million in public financing. Beyond the financial support, the initiative has increased visibility of women in tech, encouraged more gender-diverse entrepreneurial ecosystems, and inspired replicable public-private support models. Qualitatively, the programme has helped build a stronger network of female entrepreneurs and showcased the potential of women-led innovation in areas like fintech, e-commerce, healthtech, and AI.
KEY TAKEAWAYS
One of the key lessons from implementing this solution is the importance of targeted financial instruments that address specific structural inequalities. General startup funding is often not enough; what works is tailored support that includes gender-sensitive criteria, mentorship networks, and public awareness. Another takeaway is that public funding, when combined with national recovery plans and EU frameworks, can act as a powerful lever for inclusive innovation. The success of the programme shows that closing the gender gap in digital entrepreneurship requires proactive and measurable policy actions, which can be replicated in other countries with similar inequalities.
