During this year's International Women's Month, FundQuest Financial Services Limited reaffirmed their dedication to economic empowerment by organizing the first-ever FundHER by FundQuest Conference.
This program gathered more than 100 women-run SMEs, offering these businesses practical knowledge for growth, valuable connections, and crucially, opportunities for financing.
Presenting the initial keynote speech, Dr. Jennifer Seidu, who serves as a Principal Consultant at JV Management Consulting Limited, highlighted key obstacles faced by women entrepreneurs: limited financial resources, difficulties in growing their markets, bureaucratic challenges, and problems with operational effectiveness.
She praised FundQuest's firm action via FundHER, acknowledging the initiative as a crucial and long-overdue answer to the financial disparities faced by women-owned enterprises.
Joan Ediagbonya, who serves as the Group Head for Brand Communication and Customer Experience at FundQuest, echoed these worries using statistics. She highlighted that although women own 45 percent of small and medium-sized enterprises (SMEs) in Nigeria, merely 10 percent manage to secure formal financing. Referencing Michelle Obama, she underscored, "No nation can genuinely thrive if it restricts the capabilities of its women and denies itself the input of half its populace."
In a similar vein, Ms. Olubukola Olaigbe, the CEO of Veedic Nigeria Limited, explained how obtaining funding through FundQuest enabled the expansion of her logistics company. This demonstrates that with appropriate financial backing, female entrepreneurs can attain significant business development.
Regarding the future of FundHER, Mr. Abiodun Akinjayeju, who serves as the MD and CEO of FundQuest, emphasized that this program will continue indefinitely. He stated: "Educating a woman equates to educating an entire country; supporting a woman's enterprise means investing in economic growth."
EmoticonEmoticon