AGF, AfDB Kick Off African Women Finance Series In Nigeria

The African Guarantee Fund (AGF), in partnership with the African Development Bank Group (AfDB), has reiterated why increasing women’s financial inclusion has positive impacts on Nigeria’s economy.

This was disclosed during the fifth AFAWA Finance Series held on Tuesday.

The AFAWA Finance Series is a component of the African Development Bank’s Affirmative Finance Action for Women in Africa (AFAWA) initiative that brings together government representatives, policy makers and financial institution leaders to offer an introduction to AFAWA’s partnership services for the Nigerian market.

Speaking during the opening ceremony on behalf of the Minister of Finance, Wale Edun, Grace Ogbonna, the acting permanent secretary/director Economic Research and Policy Management Department, Federal Ministry of Finance, said that, “the topic of women’s empowerment is one that demands our attention, our commitment, and our collective efforts to ensure that women have equal opportunities so as to fully participate in our nation’s economic growth. Women constitute a substantial portion of our population and their full and equal participation in the economy is not just a matter of social justice but it is also one of economic parity.”

The Lagos event follows AFAWA Finance Series in Tanzania, the Democratic Republic of the Congo, Ghana and Angola.

“In Nigeria, there is a real opportunity for scale.  Micro, small and medium-sized enterprises make up more than three-quarters of Nigeria’s workforce,” said AfDB’s Vice President for Agriculture, Human & Social Development, Dr Beth Dunford.