Nigeria, others to get Google’s $25m for women, girls

Two Nigerian organisations are among the 34 funding recipients of the $25m Google.org Impact Challenge for Women and Girls.

The $25m global philanthropy challenge was launched in March 2021 and called for gender equity-focused organisations to submit their boldest and most innovative ideas to create a more equitable economic reality for women and girls.

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The Nigerian organisations selected include ImpactHer and Women’s World Banking which outlined projects that will help women and girls, especially those in geographically, economically, and socially marginalised populations reach their full economic potential.

ImpactHer’s ‘Re-CubateHER’ project will support women-owned businesses to become technology-enabled while the curriculum will be deployed to women without internet access through interactive voice response technology to their phones.

Thirty-four organizations which include three from Kenya, two from Nigeria, one from Rwanda, and two from South Africa, among others, were selected from over 7,800 project applications, the most ever for a Google.org Impact Challenge.

President of Google.org, Jacquelline Fuller, said, “Globally, women have been nearly twice as likely to lose their jobs during COVID-19 as men. It’s vital that we elevate and support work that empowers women and girls to reach their full economic potential, especially in marginalised communities.

“The pandemic recovery must be an inclusive one, and we know that when we invest in women and girls, we all benefit.”

In addition to funding of up to $1 million each, recipients will participate in a four-month accelerator programme led by Google’s Accelerator and Women Techmakers communities, in partnership with Vital Voices to move their projects forward.