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MSMEs | Enterpreneurship

IWD: AXA Mansard Empowers Female Entrepreneurs

Mar 10, 2022   •   by Proshare Research   •   Source: Proshare   •   eye-icon 207 views

Thursday, March 10, 2022 / 1:33 PM / Release by AXA Mansard / Header Image Credit: AXA Mansard 

 

As part of its continued commitment to Women and the SME sector in Nigeria, AXA Mansard, the global leader in insurance and asset management, has provided financial and capacity development support for over 200 female SME owners last week. 

 

It provided this support through a capacity development conference organised by SME 100 Africa, in commemoration of the International Women's Day. SME 100 Africa is a social enterprise that supports young African entrepreneurs along their journey towards professional success. 

 

Speaking during the conference, Chief Client Officer, AXA Mansard, Rashidat Adebisi, said that collaborating with SME 100 to empower SMEs is another way in the series of programmes and initiatives that AXA Mansard is using to inspire and empower women.  

 

According to her, AXA Mansard's commitment to SMEs is not just about the ripple effect it will have on the economy, it is also about the gap that it will bridge. "And empowering these brilliant business owners around the International Women's Day, is our way of raising the awareness about the different socio-economic possibilities of unlocking the potentials of women either in business, career or other social endeavour", she explained.  

 

Commenting on the theme of this year's International Women's Day, Rashidat furthered: "in life, we will face challenges and different biases. These biases affect everyone however, it is stronger against women. We must therefore identify these biases and collectively start making changes. To unlock the full potential of the world, we must be ready to put in the work and it starts from breaking our biases, especially against women.  

 

Commenting about the SME Business pitch competition, which happened on the sideline of the conference, the Chief Customer and Marketing Officer, AXA Mansard, Jumoke Odunlami explained that the goal of the company in investing in the competition is not just to highlight the ingenuities of female SMEs in Nigeria, it is to give them constructive feedback on how to improve their business and help them understand the importance of Insurance.  

 

She said "For us, it is not just about who gets to win the prize money. The prize money is one of the many benefits of participating in this competition. The real value is for us to demonstrate our role to business owners as being not just an Insurance company that pays claims when the unforeseen happens, but as the Insurance partner who Is there for you every step of the way; giving you feedback, providing expert opinion, and assuring you that you can take on the world, confident that you are covered.  

 

Friendlies Sanitary Ware founded by Nkem Obianwu, emerged the winner of the pitch, going home with the prize money of One Million Naira (N1,000,000) towards their business. 

 

The month of March is set aside globally and observed as the Women's Month. The observance peaks on 8th March, the day that is celebrated worldwide as International Women's Day. This date is significant in many ways, as it is a time to reflect on progress made on women's rights as well as celebrate acts of courage and determination by ordinary women around the world.  

 

The 2022 International Women's Day Conference which held on Friday, March 4, 2022, was themed 'Gender Equality Today for A Sustainable Tomorrow'. It held in a hybrid (both virtual and physical) format and featured different sessions such as Mentorship training, pitch competition, networking and more.

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