GroFin Nigeria supports women entrepreneurs to ‘step up and scale up’
GroFin Nigeria (Lagos) recently hosted nearly 90 women entrepreneurs at a capacity building workshop in Lagos. The event formed part of GroWoman, GroFin’s Gender Lens Investing Initiative, and focused on equipping women entrepreneurs in business planning and strategy. Women empowerment is one of GroFin’s core impact objectives.
GroFin hosted the event in partnership with Sheba Centre, a GroFin client and events management company. Omolara Adelusi, the owner of Sheba Centre, shared her entrepreneurial journey and encouraged other women entrepreneurs “to step up and scale up” their businesses.
Women entrepreneurs from various sectors including agro-processing, education, healthcare, retail, and manufacturing attended the event and were inspired by its theme of ‘Breaking the Myth’ around gender roles which assume that women cannot – or should not – venture into the business world.
Bisi Onim, executive director and COO at FundQuest Financial Services, and Tope Orolu, managing director at TIS Capital & Advisory, spoke on the role of a business plan in a thriving business. The speakers encouraged entrepreneurs to develop their business plans holistically.
The learning sessions included practical guides to business planning which some of the participants even described as an “abridged MBA”. Attendees also testified to have garnered more knowledge on sustaining their business, building a proper structure as well as implementing the right strategies for business growth.
“The facilitators made the business plan very easy to digest. I am going to run my business as a system and leverage on resources outside of my immediate environment. I will further develop my business plan and would love to have more information on subsequent events of this nature.” said one attendee.
GroFin’s mission is aligned with the United Nation’s Sustainable Development Goal 5 (Achieve gender equality and empower all women and girls) through its focus on women–led businesses and women employment. GroFin has supported over 122 women-owned businesses and 30% of the jobs our investments sustain are held by women.
GroFin is partnering with the International Trade Centre (ITC) in SheTrades Invest, an initiative to increase investment in women-owned businesses in the countries where we operate. The SheTrades initiative aims to connect three million women to market by 2021. In addition, GroFin works with the Vital Voices Programme to help women entrepreneurs lead positive change in their communities. GroFin sponsored 12 clients for the VV GROW Fellowship, a highly competitive one-year accelerator program for women who own small or medium-sized businesses.
If you are a woman entrepreneur looking to grow your business, learn more about GroFin’s financing and business support. Or speak directly with a GroFin representative at one our local offices for more information.