Access Bank partners Rivers State on women entrepreneur engagement

In sustenance of its objective to empowering Women in Business, Access Bank Plc through its W Academy in partnership with the Office of the Rivers State Governor’s wife recently organised a capacity building workshop for female business owners in the state.

The ‘Womenpreneur Business Workshop’ was the second edition of the Bank’s empowerment program in line with the other unique offerings and initiatives that are deployed to the Bank’s female customers under the W initiative.

The Port Harcourt edition was facilitated by the Enterprise Development Centre (EDC) of the Pan Atlantic University. The objective of the ‘Womenpreneur Business Workshop’ is to provide a discounted and practical capacity building program that will equip female business owners to thrive especially with the current economic realities in Nigeria.

The workshop also provided participants with essential knowledge and information whilst simplifying the processes required to grow their businesses given the present macro-economic headwinds. In her opening remarks, the Governor’s wife, Justice Eberechi Suzzette Nyesom-Wike who sponsored 238 women under the RivEthics project, said, “When women are empowered, more than half of societal problems would be solved.

We have learnt a lot that will improve the businesses of our women, I commend Access Bank for giving women the opportunity to learn to be self-reliant and how to improve their lives and businesses.” Ope Wemi-Jones, group head, products and segments of Access Bank, noted that the goal of the program was to further strengthen the economic contribution of women in Nigeria. It was also in line with what the Bank set out to do with the W initiative – the home for everything Access Bank has to offer women.

“Through the initiative, we inspire, connect and empower women. We are deeply committed to supporting female entrepreneurs and this workshop is one of the ways by which we seek to actualize this goal,” she added.

At the end of the workshop, participants did not only gain new insights in managing their businesses but also received Small and Medium Enterprise (SME) tool kit, personalised certificates and training materials.