AfDB Commits $750,000 to Support Women-Led Businesses in Nigeria

The African Development Bank Group (AfDB) has committed $750,000 in grants to support women-led businesses in Nigeria, with the funding expected to improve access to finance, strengthen entrepreneurship and create jobs over three years.

The investment will be shared equally among three Nigerian organisations, each receiving $250,000 to provide targeted support for female entrepreneurs. The beneficiaries are the Lagos State Employment Trust Fund (LSETF), the Pan African Women Empowerment Network (PAWEN) and the ImpactHER Foundation.

The bank announced the funding on Friday through a statement unveiling its partnership with LSETF under the second cohort of the Women Entrepreneurship Enablers Project. The programme is financed through the AfDB’s Affirmative Finance Action for Women in Africa initiative, which aims to expand financial opportunities for women-owned and women-led enterprises across the continent.

Under the arrangement, LSETF will use its $250,000 grant to support 610 women-led businesses. PAWEN and ImpactHER will each receive the same amount to implement interventions designed to help female entrepreneurs strengthen their operations and expand their businesses.

The programme will provide financial literacy training, assistance with business formalisation, mentorship and business development services. Participants will also receive support to access markets and financing opportunities, addressing some of the barriers that prevent women-led enterprises from growing and creating employment.

Speaking on the initiative, the AfDB’s Acting Vice President for Regional Development, Integration and Business Delivery and Director General for Nigeria, Dr Abdul Kamara, said supporting women entrepreneurs was important to the country’s economic development. He noted that better access to skills, business networks and financing would help women build sustainable enterprises and contribute more effectively to job creation.

Lagos State Governor Babajide Sanwo-Olu, represented at the launch by his Deputy Chief of Staff, Sam Egube, welcomed the partnership and said it would strengthen existing efforts to support small businesses. Sanwo-Olu stated that LSETF had provided business support and access to affordable financing to more than three million small businesses over the past decade, with women accounting for nearly 60 per cent of businesses in its portfolio.

The AfDB said the latest commitment aligns with its Nigeria Country Strategy Paper for 2025–2030, which prioritises inclusive economic growth and opportunities for women and young people. It also builds on the first cohort of the Women Entrepreneurship Enablers Project, launched in 2022 with a target of supporting 16,000 women-led businesses across 26 African countries, and complements a separate $61 million financing package for the Development Bank of Nigeria to widen access to affordable funding for women-owned enterprises nationwide.