Women Empowerment Programs in 2020

Lately, more and more institutions are setting up enabling systems and structures, realizing that there is a need to develop and support the growth of women who are leading and contributing to different sectors of the economy.

Some of these programs are set up uniquely to meet the needs of African women and include the provision of grants to community-based organizations, capacity building support with a strong focus on narrowing the gap on gender parity.

Earlier, I’d written about some of Nigeria’s foremost Women Empowerments Clubs that promote sustainable inclusion and growth and I think it is important to talk about the opportunities available outside of clubs and business networks.

Here are a few that caught my eye;

• The African Women’s Development Fund (AWDF)- a grant-making foundation that supports local, national and regional organizations in Africa working towards women’s empowerment. Since the start of operations, AWDF has provided US$17 million in grants to 800 women’s organizations in 42 African countries.
• The Nigeria For Women Project is set up by the World Bank to support improved livelihoods for women in targeted areas of Nigeria. Since its start, it has focused on building social capital by galvanizing and strengthening both new and existing Women Affinity Groups (WAGs) that can serve as institutional platforms for women in Nigeria.
• The Women for Africa (FMxA) in partnership with the Spanish Centre of Excellence set up a program called the ‘Science by Women Programme’ to tackle the many challenges faced in Africa as regards health, sustainable agriculture, food, and climate change, enabling women to play leading roles and contribute to Africa’s development in the science and technology sector.
• The Business Fund for Women managed by the Bank of Industry is a N90 million Business Development Fund for Women (BUDFOW) on behalf of the Federal Ministry of Women Affairs and Social Development (FMWASD), which provides soft loans to women entrepreneurs.