Flourish Africa, a women-focused empowerment initiative founded by Apostle Folorunsho Alakija, has rolled out N300m in grants for women entrepreneurs across Nigeria after completing a nationwide training and business pitch process.
The grant announcement was made at Flourish Africa’s ninth annual conference held in Lagos under the theme ‘She Champions’, which attracted entrepreneurs, regulators, development partners and private sector leaders.
The grants were awarded under the fourth cycle of the Flourish Africa Grants Programme, during which 506 women entrepreneurs underwent intensive business training aimed at strengthening business structure and growth readiness.
From the total number trained, 409 participants submitted business plans for assessment. Out of these, 200 entrepreneurs progressed to the pitch stage, while 100 businesses were eventually selected to receive funding following evaluation by an independent panel of judges.
Each of the successful businesses is to receive N3m, bringing the total value of grants disbursed under the current cycle to N300m.
Speaking on the structure of the programme, the founder of Flourish Africa, Alakija, said the process was intentionally designed to emphasise merit, preparedness and accountability among beneficiaries.
“We designed this process to be rigorous because Nigerian women entrepreneurs are capable of building serious businesses. Out of 506 women trained, only 100 emerged for funding. That discipline matters because access to capital must be matched with capacity, structure, and accountability if businesses are to survive and scale,” she was quoted as saying in a statement released on Sunday.
The organisation noted that Nigeria has one of the highest rates of female entrepreneurship globally, but many women-owned businesses continue to struggle with access to formal finance.
Flourish Africa said its intervention is aimed at closing this gap by combining structured skills development with practical exposure to investment readiness and governance standards.
The businesses selected for the grants cut across sectors including manufacturing, agribusiness, food processing, fashion, beauty and services.
Judges involved in the process reportedly observed improvements in presentation quality, clearer business models and stronger market articulation among participants compared to previous cohorts, while also identifying the need for deeper financial literacy.
Beyond funding, the programme places emphasis on governance, record keeping and scalability to prepare participants for engagement with lenders and investors.
“Women are already driving Nigeria’s informal and small business economy. What Flourish Africa is doing is formalising that strength by equipping women with skills, governance, and funding. When women succeed in business, they reinvest in their families and communities, creating a multiplier effect that drives inclusive economic growth,” Alakija added. The scheme targets long term enterprise stability.
