The Federal Government says it has rolled out initiatives aimed at economically empowering no fewer than 10 million Nigerian women as part of its drive to achieve a $1 trillion economy.
Minister of Women Affairs and Social Development, Imaan Sulaiman-Ibrahim, announced this at a high-level event on the sidelines of the 2025 United Nations General Assembly in New York.
The session, themed “Scaling Women’s Economic Empowerment: Financing Inclusive Growth for Peace, Development, and Human Rights—Lessons from Nigeria for Women Project,” highlighted strategies to boost women’s participation in national growth.
Sulaiman-Ibrahim explained that the Nigeria for Women Project (NFWP), championed under President Bola Tinubu’s administration, is the country’s largest women’s economic empowerment platform.
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“In its first phase, we mobilised over 460,000 women into Women Affinity Groups across several states,” she said. “These groups have collectively saved about ₦4.9 billion of their own funds, providing loans to expand businesses, meet health needs, and support education.”
She added that more than 330,000 women have already accessed livelihood grants, while thousands have been linked to financial services, national identity systems, and health insurance.
Following a successful pilot in six states, the programme has now expanded nationwide. The minister noted that the model, though inspired by global best practices, has been tailored to suit Nigerian realities, helping to reduce household vulnerability, strengthen democracy at the grassroots, and promote inclusive development.
