The African Development Bank (AfDB) says it has approved a $61 million in funding to expand access to affordable credit for women-owned and women-led businesses in Nigeria.

The bank made this known in a statement in Abuja on Friday.

The funding, approved by the AfDB’s board of directors, will be channelled through the Development Bank of Nigeria to support women entrepreneurs, particularly in the agricultural sector.

According to the bank, the financing consists of a $50 million gender-focused line of credit and an $8 million concessional facility under the agri-food small and medium enterprises (SME) catalytic financing mechanism.

“It also consists of a $3 million grant under the Affirmative Finance Action for Women in Africa initiative,” it said.

The bank said the facility was designed to strengthen lending to micro, small and medium enterprises (MSMEs) through the DBN’s network of participating financial institutions.

It added that more than 95 per cent of the financing was specifically earmarked for women-owned and women-led small and medium enterprises.

Abdul Kamara, director-general of the AfDB Nigeria country department, described women entrepreneurs as one of Nigeria’s greatest economic assets.

He said, “Women entrepreneurs are one of Nigeria’s greatest economic assets and one of its most underleveraged sectors.

“This operation reflects the AfDB’s commitment to unlocking economic opportunities for women.

“By working through DBN to reach women-owned businesses in agriculture, clean energy, healthcare and beyond, the bank is investing in the engine of Nigeria’s inclusive economic transformation.” 

The AfDB said that the operation would combine long-term financing, concessional resources, partial credit guarantees and capacity-building support to improve access to finance for women entrepreneurs.

The bank also said the initiative aligned with its broader commitment to narrowing the gender financing gap across Africa and to promoting private-sector-led growth.

According to the bank, performance -based incentives under the AFAWA programme are expected to increase the number of eligible women-owned enterprises and expand women-focused lending within the DBN’s MSME portfolio.

The AfDB said the approval further strengthened its longstanding partnership with the DBN, which dates back to the bank’s support for the institution’s establishment through equity investment, financing and governance support.

It added that the operation aligned with the bank’s 10-year strategy 2024–2033 and Nigeria’s country strategy paper 2025–2030, which prioritised inclusive growth, gender equality and youth-focused green development.

(NAN)