Wema Bank has teamed up with Naija Brand Chick (NBC) and the Small and Medium Enterprise Development Agency of Nigeria (SMEDAN) to facilitate intra-continental trade and empower women in business. The collaboration was revealed during a briefing to announce an upcoming trade fair scheduled for August 17 and 18 in London.
Ayodele Olojede, Divisional Head of Retail and SME at Wema Bank, emphasized that the collaboration aims to tackle the obstacles women encounter in global trade. He noted that statistics from the World Trade Organization (WTO) reveal only 15 percent of businesses involved in international trade are led by women.
Ayodele Olojede, said, “In Africa, women only produce one-fourth of the total generated exported value, despite making up 50 per cent of the population. As a purveyor of wealth for over 8 decades, we understand that the economic prosperity of our people is directly related to ours. Africa, especially Nigeria, can only grow if we trade amongst ourselves and with other countries, regions, and continents. Through this partnership, we aim to increase investment, integrate Nigerian exporters into the global value chain, and facilitate foreign exchange collections using digital collection tools.”
In his remarks, Charles Odili, the Director General of SMEDAN, praised Wema Bank for its significant contributions to empowering women-owned businesses and SMEs in Nigeria in recent years. He expressed confidence that collaborating with the bank would ensure the success of the upcoming London event. Odili also disclosed that SMEDAN would coordinate with relevant government agencies to facilitate visa approvals for all entrepreneurs attending the exhibition in London.
Tola Johnson, the Special Assistant to the President on Job Creation from the Office of the Vice President, praised Wema Bank for its efforts in empowering SMEs and women, particularly through the Sara initiative in recent years. Johnson expressed readiness from his office to collaborate with Wema Bank on upcoming programs aimed at enhancing SMEs and generating employment opportunities for Nigerians, with a particular focus on youth, in the coming months.