Access Bank Launches Womenpreneur Pitch-a-ton Season 3
Access Bank Launches Womenpreneur Pitch-a-ton Season 3: Empowering Female Entrepreneurs across Africa.
As part of the Bank’s mandate to empower female entrepreneurs with financial and also business skills, Access Bank Pls has unveiled the third edition of its Womenpreneur Pitch-a-ton Africa program.
The Womenpreneur Pitch-a-ton Africa program is designed to provide female owned businesses across Africa an opportunity to access finance; world-class business trainings as well as mentoring opportunities. This program has been designed to create an enabling environment for female entrepreneurs to grow their businesses.
Speaking at the launch of the third edition of the initiative, Ayona Trimnell, Group Head W Initiative, said; “Access Bank has been a leading advocate for women’s economic empowerment in Africa; and this is the key motivation for the “W” Initiative which caters to the women economy particularly in the areas of financing; capacity building and creating networking opportunities for women”.
She further stated that; “we launched the first Womenpreneur pitch-a-ton initiative in 2019 in line with our value proposition to be the No. 1 Bank of Choice for women in Nigeria, and we have received over 100,000 applications over the last 2 years. In 2020, despite the pandemic; we were able to expand the program to other female entrepreneurs, across 7 Africa countries with 3 winners emerging form Sierra Leone; Ghana and Zambia out of 50 finalists. This year we are making the program bigger, as well as better by increasing the numbers to 100 women entrepreneurs; who will emerge as finalists. The program will also be opening up to a total of 9 African countries; (Nigeria, Ghana, Zambia, Rwanda, Mozambique, Kenya, South Africa, Democratic Republic of Congo, Sierra Leona and Gambia).
However, the 2021 Womenpreneur Pitch-a-ton Africa program is open from now through August 13th, 2021; and will also offer financial grants, an exclusive certified capacity building program and business coaching aimed at empowering women entrepreneurs. Interested female entrepreneurs who meet the criteria of having an existing business for at least one year; with at least 50% female ownership and between the age of 18 – 45 years are eligible and are required to fill an online application.
All online applications will be reviewed and screened by independent business experts to 500 candidates; who will also be required to send in a sixty second video pitch for the opportunity to be selected as part of the final top 100 candidates; who will benefit from an exclusive and certified Mini-MBA as well as grant prizes.
“The program is designed for a period of 3-months comprising 12 weeks of Mini-MBA training; in collaboration with the International Finance Corporation (IFC); and pitching sessions to a Pan-African Jury panel where the top one hundred (100) finalists will pitch their businesses; infusing learnings from the Mini-MBA and will stand an opportunity to win financial grants and other consolation prizes.
“As a leading commercial bank in Nigeria, access Bank has made significant investments aimed at enhancing growth in the Small and Medium-size Enterprise sector. The Bank is also a major advocate for women in business through innovation offerings like the W Power Loan, a Discounted Financing at 15% Interest Per Annum, for women to grow their business as well as other Business Support Services. The Womenpreneus Pitch-a-ton Africa Program is the first women-in-business support initiative of its kind in the industry.
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