Access Bank Plc, through its W Initiative, has concluded a community engagement programme to create awareness for the LSETF W Initiative loan package created for women in business.
One of the brand objectives of Access Bank is to be the Bank of choice for women, particularly women in business by providing them with access to finance.
Accordingly, the Bank through its W Initiative, partnered the Lagos State Employment Trust Fund to launch the LSETF W Initiative loan.
The LSETF W Initiative loan is a matching fund financing option for women-owned businesses in Lagos State.
To further expand the reach of this offering, W Initiative and the LSETF teams embarked on a comprehensive community engagement across four local governments in Lagos to create awareness about availability of the product, processes as well as requirements involved.
The sessions were held at Balogun Market, Alimosho LGA, Surulere LGA and Oshodi LGA, respectively.
Financing for gender equality in these areas is more properly seen as an investment that yields an income stream in the future due to the beneficial development and growth effects.
Group Head of the W Initiative, Abiodun Olubitan, encouraged women to take the opportunity noting that access to finance would help to grow their business.
“There is a financing gap for women owned businesses for which the LSETF W Initiative loan was developed. With a highly competitive interest rate of 10% per annum, no collateral requirements, and a maximum repayment period of 24 months, female-owned SMEs are able to thrive,” she added.
This LSETF W Initiative loan is projected to increase the contributions of women-owned businesses to the Nigerian economy and reduce unemployment which will have a significant developmental impact.
Indeed, UN Women, in one of its publications titled: Financing for gender equality in the context of the Sustainable Development Goals, argues that financing for gender equality can be self-sustaining because of the feedback effects from gender equality to economy-wide well-being.
IT emphasised targeted government spending and demand-stimulating macroeconomic policies to promote women’s full employment and public investment.
“Financing for gender equality in these areas is more properly seen as an investment that yields an income stream in the future due to the beneficial development and growth effects,” the agency said.