Women-focused economic reforms gained fresh momentum on Monday as the Ekiti State Ministry of Women Affairs and Social Development and the Ekiti State Ministry of Trade, Industry, Investments, and Cooperatives sealed a strengthened partnership to scale up women’s business opportunities across Ekiti State under the Nigeria for Women Programme Scale-Up, supported by the World Bank.
At a joint strategic session in Ado-Ekiti, commissioners Olapeju Babafemi and Tayo Adeola reaffirmed the administration of Governor Biodun Abayomi Oyebanji’s resolve to push economic inclusion policies that directly target grassroots women entrepreneurs.
Mrs Babafemi said women remain central to the state’s informal and small-scale economy, particularly in agriculture, retail trade, and cooperative-driven enterprises, stressing that stronger institutional coordination would unlock wider access to finance, mentorship, and market networks. She added that the programme’s Women Affinity Groups continue to serve as structured platforms through which thousands of women receive business training, funding support, and cooperative linkages.
Mrs Adeola pledged deeper operational collaboration between both ministries to accelerate implementation of programme-backed reforms, noting that joint planning would prioritise financial literacy training and improved enterprise management skills for women-led businesses.
Also present at the meeting were the state project coordinator of the programme, Toyin Familoni, alongside permanent secretaries and senior directors from both ministries, who concluded deliberations with a joint action framework designed to fast-track implementation and expand sustainable income opportunities for women across the state.
