Why the Call Matters Now
During the International Women’s Day ceremony in Abuja, SMEDAN’s chief executive, Charles Odii, warned that the enthusiasm around gender equality often stalls at the podium. While celebrations of successful women business owners are welcome, Odii stressed that Nigeria’s economy cannot afford another round of empty promises. The country’s MSME sector—over 39.6 million enterprises—drives nearly half of the gross domestic product and supports 60 million jobs, making it the backbone of any economic reform.
"If there are 100 businesses in Nigeria, 96 of them are MSMEs," he told the audience, underscoring the sector’s sheer scale. Yet the numbers hide a serious shortfall: manufacturing contributes only 10‑15 % of output, and the pipeline for industrial‑grade jobs remains thin. This mismatch, Odii argued, is why concrete steps are needed more than ever.
The GrowHer Accelerator: Turning Talk into Results
The GrowHer Accelerator Programme, unveiled as part of SMEDAN’s celebration, is designed to plug those gaps for women entrepreneurs. It offers a blend of expert mentorship, practical business tools, and strategic networking aimed at scaling operations, breaking into new markets, and unlocking finance.
Key components of the programme include:
- Mentorship pods pairing participants with seasoned CEOs and industry veterans.
- Workshops on financial literacy, digital marketing and supply‑chain optimisation.
- Access to a curated list of potential investors and grant opportunities.
- Linkages with government agencies for regulatory guidance and export support.
Odii challenged government ministries, private sector partners and development agencies to move beyond the rhetoric of "gender equality" and fund the accelerator’s rollout at scale. He warned that without such investment, the promise of women's economic empowerment will stay stuck in policy documents.
The programme also aims to address the manufacturing bottleneck by encouraging women‑led firms to adopt locally sourced inputs and explore light‑industrial ventures. By doing so, the initiative hopes to lift the sector’s contribution to manufacturing closer to the national target.
Stakeholders in attendance—including representatives from the Ministry of Industry, commercial banks and international NGOs—expressed cautious optimism. Many pledged to provide in‑kind support, such as office space, technical expertise or seed capital, but Odii reminded them that measurable outcomes will be the true test.
In the weeks ahead, SMEDAN plans to roll out a monitoring framework that will track participant growth, job creation and funding secured. Transparent reporting, the director-general said, will keep pressure on all parties to stay accountable and keep the momentum going.
