Eleven women entrepreneurs have graduated from the seventh cohort of the Women in Tech Incubator and Accelerator Programme organised by Pan Atlantic University’s Enterprise Development Centre.
The programme was organised in partnership with the Standard Chartered Foundation and Village Capital to support women running technology and technology enabled businesses.Since its launch in 2019, the initiative has supported 60 women entrepreneurs whose businesses operate in sectors including education, healthcare, fashion, wellness and supply chain management.
Speaking at the graduation ceremony in Lagos, the Director of the Enterprise Development Centre, Dr Nneka Okekearu, said the programme had continued to change in response to developments in the economy and technology sector. She said the latest participants received specialised advisory services in addition to business training, mentoring and coaching designed to help them improve their businesses.
“Every year we see changes economically, socially, and in the tech space. This year, we introduced more specialised advisory services,” Okekearu noted.
According to her, the programme also placed greater emphasis on improving the governance and financial structures of the participating businesses. She said the organisers helped each founder establish a board to improve decision making and make the businesses more attractive to potential investors.
“We set up a board for each business to help them refine their model. When that is done, they become a magnet for funding. They have financial discipline, financial literacy, and all the structures funders require,” she noted.
The programme also provides seed grants and access to single digit loan opportunities through its network, giving participants additional support to grow their businesses.To qualify, businesses must be at least 51 percent owned by women, use technology in their operations and have moved beyond the idea stage. Okekearu said many of the businesses developed by the latest participants were created to address problems they had experienced personally or observed within their communities.
“We have a woman building a platform for children with learning disabilities. Another built a platform after watching her mother make over a million naira daily but couldn’t access funding because of a lack of documentation,” she said.
The Head of Corporate Affairs, Brand and Marketing at Standard Chartered Nigeria, Joke Adu, said the bank remained committed to creating more economic opportunities for women through entrepreneurship.She said the programme combined business training with advisory support, while selected participants also received funding to expand their businesses.
“Today we are celebrating Cohort 7 of the Standard Chartered Foundation Women in Tech Incubator. We started in 2019 and have supported 60 women, impacting thousands,” Adu said.
Adu also called for stronger collaboration between organisations and government to create more opportunities for women entrepreneurs.The keynote speaker and Founder of Women’s Technology Empowerment Centre, Oreoluwa Leshi, said greater participation by women in technology was necessary for Nigeria’s development. She noted that women currently make up only about 20 percent of Nigeria’s technology workforce, highlighting the need for increased access to mentorship, funding and business support.
One of the graduates, Fara Popoola, Founder and Chief Executive Officer of Check It Limited, said the programme helped her streamline her business and identify her target customers.Check It Limited operates Proctor 360, a platform that helps wholesalers protect their businesses during import and export activities. “Three months ago, I was all over the place with multiple products and customer segments. This programme helped me focus on my ideal customer and how to serve them,” Popoola stated. She added that the grant she received would help the company employ field agents and expand its services to businesses operating in Nigeria’s informal sector.
