Key points
- MTN Foundation says women make up 43.7 per cent of its beneficiaries.
- The partnership will support 200 female entrepreneurs in Kano and Cross River.
- Beneficiaries will receive entrepreneurship training, business support and access to funding and markets.
- MTN Foundation targets equal male and female participation in its Y’elloPreneur programme by 2030.
Main story
The MTN Foundation and UN Women have partnered to strengthen the economic participation of 200 rural women entrepreneurs in Kano and Cross River states.
The partnership was formalised through a Memorandum of Understanding signed on Friday in Lagos as part of efforts to improve women’s access to skills, finance, markets and business infrastructure.
MTN Foundation Executive Director, Dr Odunayo Sanya, said women currently account for 43.7 per cent of the foundation’s beneficiaries, reflecting its focus on expanding opportunities for women through its interventions.
She said the new programme would be implemented under the Y’elloPreneur initiative and target rural female entrepreneurs who face barriers to business growth.
The beneficiaries will receive entrepreneurship training, business development support, pitching opportunities and access to funding, with training to be delivered through the Enterprise Development Centre.
Sanya said the foundation had previously supported 122 women entrepreneurs with N304 million and had built the capacity of more than 6,000 female entrepreneurs through the Y’elloPreneur initiative.
She said the foundation was working towards achieving equal participation between men and women in the initiative by 2030.
UN Women Country Representative, Beatrice Eyong, said the partnership would also expose rural women to digital opportunities and help them participate more actively in Nigeria’s growing digital economy.
She said Kano and Cross River were selected partly because of their strong agricultural activities, particularly in rice and cassava production, creating opportunities for women to move beyond primary production into value addition.
The Head of Internal Audit and Forensic at MoMo PSB, Dr Howard Edafe, said the financial institution would support the programme by strengthening financial education and inclusion among participating women.
He said beneficiaries would be selected through community-based processes designed to ensure transparency and fairness.
The issues
Rural women entrepreneurs often face overlapping barriers involving access to finance, business skills, digital tools and reliable markets. These constraints can limit the ability of small businesses to expand, particularly in agricultural value chains where access to processing facilities and market opportunities can determine whether producers capture additional value.
What’s being said
“When a woman is empowered, she becomes a multiplier who transforms communities and strengthens the economy.” – Dr Odunayo Sanya, Executive Director, MTN Foundation:
“Without digital inclusion, many rural women will remain excluded from opportunities shaping our future economy.” – Beatrice Eyong, Country Representative, UN Women:
“Our commitment goes beyond today’s signing. We will drive financial inclusion, strengthen financial education and ensure transparent beneficiary selection for successful programme implementation.” – Dr Howard Edafe, Head of Internal Audit and Forensic, MoMo PSB:
What’s next
The selected entrepreneurs are expected to undergo business training, develop proposals and pursue funding opportunities for viable enterprises. The programme will focus on improving women’s access to finance, markets, digital opportunities and productive infrastructure in the two states.
Bottom line
The MTN Foundation and UN Women partnership will target 200 rural women entrepreneurs in Kano and Cross River, combining business training, financial inclusion and market access to address some of the barriers limiting women’s economic participation.
