Nestle Nigeria said it is helping more rural women in Nigeria build financial security with the launch of the fourth phase of its Empowering Rural Women in Nigeria Project.
The project which held in Port Harcourt recently has an additional 50 beneficiaries from the South-South region of the country, selected from the company’s value chain, were inducted into the program at a ceremony that included several training sessions.
At the training and induction session in Port Harcourt, Nestle Nigeria’s Commercial manager, Mr. Khaled Ramadan said: “we are happy to fulfil our promise of expanding Nestle Empowering Rural Women in Nigeria Project to reach more women in other parts of Nigeria. We are pleased with the progress made so far by the 150 currently benefiting from the project.”
He stated that, “the beneficiaries who currently enjoy the training and mentorship provided by Nestle and her implementation partners, FDConsults are reporting faster turnover and increased revenue as well as stronger visibility of their outlets within their locations.”
He added that, “we are confident that these additional 50 selected retailers in South-South, will also reap the full benefits of the support we are providing through training, mentorship and grants.”
“The beneficiaries comprising female retailers in Nestle’s value chain, will receive grants valued at 300 per cent of their monthly sales in form of Nestle’s products. They will also participate in training and mentorship programs which will enable them scale up their businesses, thereby increasing their household incomes,” Ramadan said.
Also, head, Partnerships & Training at FDConsults, Mr. Phranklin Audu said: “the Nestle Empowering Rural Women project is such an amazing initiative. The progress and growth recorded by the women in the several states where the project is already ongoing is quite refreshing to see.
“We are talking about visible growth. Grade-C retailers are moving up the distribution ladder and more importantly these women are doing more sales turnovers thereby earning higher incomes for themselves. We must commend the visioners of this project and the entire project team for staying true to cause.”
One of the beneficiaries, Mrs. Joyce Nwaiwo, expressing her gratitude to Nestle, said: “I feel so happy about this opportunity. I still cannot believe that this is true, because it is just like a dream. I want to say a big thank you to Nestle.”
The Nestle Empowering Rural Women in Nigeria Project is designed to help rural women retailers scale up their businesses and sustain the new level of up to three times the size of their existing businesses.
The project started in August 2021, in North Central Nigeria, with the induction of the first 50 women beneficiaries into the project from the suburbs of Abuja.
In November of last year, the project moved to the South West and added an additional 50 beneficiaries, selected from the axis of Oshogbo, Ede and Ilesha in Osun State. In February of this year, the South East benefited with 50 inductees from the Nsukka and Obolo-Afo axis of Enugu State.
