The Federal Government, through the Ministry of Women Affairs, has teamed up with WEMA Bank PLC to empower 500,000 women across Nigeria’s six geopolitical zones. This initiative aims to combat poverty, unemployment, and inequality among women in the country.
In a statement released on Wednesday, Grace Njoku, the Ministry’s Head of Information and Public Relations, highlighted that the initiative is part of President Bola Tinubu’s “Renewed Hope Agenda.” This agenda focuses on skill acquisition, agriculture, and providing grants and loans to women.
Minister of Women Affairs, Uju Kennedy-Ohanenye, emphasized the project’s potential to significantly contribute to national development by economically empowering women, who represent a substantial portion of Nigeria’s population. She pointed out that women and children account for 70% of the nation’s demographic, making their empowerment critical in addressing societal issues such as early marriages, domestic violence, and poverty.
Kennedy-Ohanenye stated, “Empowering the gender through skill acquisition, access to grants and loans, and business tools will yield significant positive results.” She reiterated the Ministry’s commitment to creating an enabling environment for women’s empowerment, particularly at the grassroots level, through initiatives in farming, food processing, and tailoring.
The Minister added that empowering women could lead to a reduction in out-of-school dropouts and incidents of sexual and gender-based violence while fostering economic contributions to families and the nation.
WEMA Bank’s Managing Director, Moruf Oseni, expressed the bank’s commitment to women-focused initiatives as part of its Corporate Social Responsibility (CSR). He stated that discussions were underway to establish a robust partnership on women empowerment through the MOWA-SARA accelerator program.
Represented by Tunde Mabawonku, the bank’s Executive Director of Retail and Digital, Oseni affirmed WEMA Bank’s dedication to enhancing the economic status of Nigerian women through its CSR efforts focused on women empowerment initiatives across the states.
This partnership aims to create a supportive framework for women, enabling them to thrive economically and contribute positively to their communities and the nation as a whole.
