SHE WINS AFRICA: IFC OPENS DOOR FOR 1,000 WOMEN ENTREPRENEURS ACROSS AFRICA

Sister, if you dey run a business and you don tire of hearing "no capital, no market, no connection" as excuse, this one na for you. IFC — the private sector arm of the World Bank Group — don expand their She Wins Africa program from 100 to 1,000 women entrepreneurs across sub-Saharan Africa, and Nigeria don already key in through the Federal Ministry of Industry, Trade and Investment.

This no be one-off grant wey them go drop money give you comot. Na a full package: training on how to make your business investment-ready, mentorship, connection to investors, and in some cases, seed capital and grant funding to help you scale.

WHO CAN APPLY

Women founders or co-founders of a legally registered small or medium business (SME)

Business must be located in a sub-Saharan African country (Nigeria, Ghana, Kenya, and others across West, East, Central, North and Southern Africa are all part of the target regions)

Open to different sectors, but tech, agribusiness, manufacturing, creative industries, renewable energy, and services are getting priority

Business must show real potential to grow, create jobs, and impact community — this no be just for paper businesses

Previous participants of similar IFC women's programs may not be eligible again

WHY YOU SHOULD APPLY

If you don dey struggle to raise money for your business, you sabi as e be — banks dey always ask for collateral wey person no get, and investors no too dey find small businesses outside Lagos or Nairobi. She Wins Africa dey built to solve exactly this problem. From the first cohort, women wey pass through the program mobilised over $4 million in follow-on financing, with investment partners like Sahel Capital and other regional funds coming in after the training. Beyond the money, you go get investor connections, business mentorship, and access to a network wey fit change your business story.

APPLICATION STATUS AND DEADLINE

As at now, the official application portal for this expanded 1,000-women phase never open. IFC and the Nigerian government say application details, deadlines, and information sessions go dey published on official program channels soon. No be scam, na just say the timing never reach.

HOW TO STAY UPDATED / WHERE TO GET CORRECT INFORMATION

Official IFC She Wins Africa page: https://www.ifc.org/en/where-we-work/africa/promoting-gender-equality-in-africa/she-wins-africa

Email the IFC She Wins Africa team directly: SheWinsAfrica@ifc.org

Follow IFC's official channels: their WhatsApp channel and social media pages linked from ifc.org

A WORD OF CAUTION

Because this program dey trend, some fake websites don already start to circulate — impersonating IFC and asking women to submit personal information for a "grant portal" wey no relate to IFC at all. Always confirm any link start with ifc.org before you submit any information anywhere. If in doubt, email SheWinsAfrica@ifc.org directly to confirm.