The Katsina State Government recently hosted a two-day North-West Governors’ Summit aimed at advancing the Nigeria for Women Project Scale-Up (NFWP-SU) — a key initiative designed to foster women’s economic empowerment, social inclusion, and political participation.

Speaking at the summit held at the Government House in Katsina on Wednesday, the Minister of Women Affairs, Imaan Sulaiman-Ibrahim, described the event as a pivotal step in Nigeria’s drive toward inclusive national growth.

She emphasized that the Nigeria for Women Project represents a unified national approach to placing women at the core of sustainable development and called on governors in the North-West to treat the initiative as a national priority.

“At the heart of President Bola Ahmed Tinubu’s Renewed Hope Agenda is the conviction that no nation can achieve progress while sidelining half of its population,” she said. “Our mission at the Ministry is to build systems, scale innovation, and make catalytic investments that positively impact the lives of grassroots women.”

Sulaiman-Ibrahim noted that the Nigeria for Women Project and its scale-up phase are among the country’s most impactful platforms for driving real and measurable change for women, especially those in underserved communities.

She highlighted that while women make up over 60% of Nigeria’s population, only around 30% own formal businesses, primarily micro, small, and medium-sized enterprises. Many women still face significant barriers to accessing credit, markets, and financial education, which stifles business growth and economic mobility.

Referencing data from the 2023 EFInA Access to Financial Services survey, she pointed out that the North-West region has the highest adult financial exclusion rate in the country — 47% — further underscoring the urgency of gender-responsive interventions like NFWP.

She explained that the scale-up phase of the project will build on lessons from the pilot phase, focusing on key areas such as changing social norms, integrated programming, livelihood support, access to credit, strengthening Women Affinity Groups (WAGs), savings culture, women’s leadership, and group governance.

“As of today, 32 states have signed on to the NFWP-SU,” the minister announced, calling it a major milestone that reflects broad political commitment and a unified vision for inclusive development. “Women’s empowerment is no longer a side issue — it’s a national priority.”

Despite the progress, she disclosed that only Katsina and Ekiti States have commenced implementation at the community level, including the formation of Women Affinity Groups. Early outcomes from pilot states show promising results — household incomes have increased by up to 30%, and reliance on informal credit has dropped by over 40%.

Sulaiman-Ibrahim concluded by stating that the ministry, in collaboration with the task team and the World Bank, plans to onboard more states by August 2025 and expand full-scale implementation to at least eight more states by the end of July.