Women own only 20% of enterprises in formal sector -Tallen

The Minister of Women Affairs, Dame Pauline Tallen, has said that Nigerian women own only 20 percent of enterprises in the formal sector of the economy and also only have 11.7 percent as board of directors.

She said this on Thursday in Abuja at the 2021 Women National Business Agenda Policy Dialogue, organized by the Association of Nigerian Women Business Network (ANWBN) with the theme, “Women Leadership and Economic Equality”.

“In Nigeria, we have experienced an apparent deficit of women in the formal sector of the economy. Women are estimated to own only 20 percent of enterprises in the formal sector and hold only 11.7 percent as Board of Directors in the country. The situation is partly explained by women’s limited access to finance, which is worsened by their lack of access to acceptable collateral.

“As more women ascend to corporate ladder, more women entrepreneur associations have emerged in the country to challenge and address some of the barriers they encounter in financing their businesses.

“The existence of these groups has helped to shape advocacy and sensitization for supporting women entrepreneurship as important to women’s success. There is a need to understand that identifying women’s empowerment and their engagement in entrepreneurship activities is key to attaining economic prosperity,” Tallen said.

She also said that the continuous delays in closing the gender gaps makes achieving the Sustainable Development Goals (SDGs) and Africa Agenda 2063 to remain elusive and a mere illusion.

The minister said that investing in women and girls and ending gender inequality would not only set Nigeria on a double-digit economic growth track, but would also significantly contribute to meeting our development goals.

She said, “There is a growing consensus that women empowerment, if well promoted responds to women’s engagement in productive activities that engenders development and poverty reduction. In all of these, collaboration is key. Let us change our strategy by loving and supporting each other.”

Also, the Minister of Transportation, Hon. Chibuike Amaechi, while noting that women are by far more intelligent and should express their brilliance in their job, urged them to collaborate and support women in the rural areas to grow.

“Please don’t ask that something should be set aside for you, ask for your right.  Ask yourselves basic questions on what to do to alleviate poverty,” Amaechi said.

Also, a Board of Trustee Member, ANWBN, Iyalode Alaba Lawson, urged the women to join hands together to make Africa and Nigeria great, adding that in unity is strength

She said, “If we can unite, we can get ourselves together, if we can work together, we can work far and make a good impact in this great country.”

Speaking earlier, the National Coordinator, ANWBN, Modupe Oyekunle, said that the coalition which was put together seven years ago with 52 associations has five key priority areas of insecurity; poor road network; lack of power; gender inequality; and access to finance.