The African Development Bank Group (AfDB) has committed $750,000 to support women entrepreneurs in Nigeria through partnerships with three institutions.
“The investment, under the second cohort of the Women Entrepreneurship Enablers Project, is financed through the bank’s Affirmative Finance Action for Women in Africa (AFAWA) initiative,” the bank said in a statement on Friday.
According to AfDB, the Lagos State Employment Trust Fund (LSETF), Pan African Women Empowerment Network (PAWEN) and ImpactHER Foundation will each receive $250,000 to support women-led businesses.
“The three-year initiative aims to strengthen women-owned enterprises through business development services, financial literacy training, mentorship, business formalisation and improved access to markets and financing,” it said.
The bank said LSETF will use its grant to support 610 women-led businesses, helping them expand operations, create jobs and contribute to economic development.
Lagos State Governor Babajide Sanwo-Olu, represented by his deputy chief of staff, Sam Egube, reaffirmed the state’s commitment to entrepreneurship and inclusive economic growth.
Mr Sanwo-Olu said LSETF had provided business support and affordable financing to more than three million small businesses in Lagos over the past decade.
He said women accounted for nearly 60 per cent of businesses in LSETF’s portfolio, adding that the AfDB grant would support revenue growth, business expansion and job creation.
Abdul Kamara, AfDB’s acting Vice-President for Regional Development, Integration and Business Delivery and Director-General for Nigeria, described women entrepreneurs as important drivers of economic transformation.
“Women-owned and women-led businesses are essential to Nigeria’s economic growth and job creation,” Mr Kamara said.
He said the partnerships would help entrepreneurs acquire the skills, networks and financing opportunities needed to build sustainable businesses and contribute to national development.
The first cohort of the Women Entrepreneurship Enablers Project was inaugurated in 2022 to support 16,000 women-led businesses across 26 African countries.
In Nigeria, the initiative aligns with AfDB’s Country Strategy Paper 2025–2030, which prioritises inclusive growth and expanded economic opportunities for women and young people.
The project complements the bank’s wider support for women entrepreneurs, including a $61 million financing package to the Development Bank of Nigeria to expand access to affordable finance for women-owned businesses.
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