Sterling Bank Plc, through its ‘One Woman Proposition’ project, says it has collaborated with QSE Foundation to empower women in the Ikate Elegushi community of Lekki in Lagos State by providing them with credit facilities.
A statement from the bank said the programme for empowering women, which is a focal point for One Woman at Sterling Bank, would enable the women to scale up their existing businesses while also positioning Sterling Bank as a gender-centric organisation.
Speaking at the presentation ceremony, the Group Head, Products and Proposition, Sterling Bank, Mr Gbenga Adegoke, said, “The empowerment programme is an integral part of the bank’s partnership with QSE Foundation, founded by Olori (Queen) Sekinat Aramide Elegushi.”
He disclosed that the One Woman Proposition of the bank recently partnered with QSE Foundation to organise free breast cancer awareness for women in the Ikate community as part of activities to mark the global Cancer Day, which held recently.
Also speaking, the Head, One Woman Proposition, Mrs Ifunanya Ugboko, said it was important to ensure female-owned businesses thrived, lifting a lot of women out of poverty.
While noting that the empowerment programme for the women would be done in various phases, she said they had analysed each beneficiary and structured the loans according to their needs and capacities, adding that those running big businesses were given as much as N300,000 and above.
The Head, EveryNanny, Mrs Adaobi Ugha, said although EveryNanny was created to assist homes/parents with stress-free parenting and domestic care support, it had provided jobs opportunities for over 2,000 women in Lagos and across Nigeria in the past two years.
“EveryNanny has evolved beyond providing nanny services to rendering other services like home tutor, elderly care, cooks and housekeepers on its platform.
She said the organisation had empowered women financially and economically while providing domestic care support for homes.
The statement said Elegushi expressed appreciation to Sterling Bank for partnering with her foundation and assisting her to fulfill a long-held desire to support women entrepreneurs with microloans in her community.
Source: punchng