360 Woman Africa Invests in the Future of Women: Awards N5M Grant to 4 Winners!

360 Woman Africa got the Four Points by Sheraton Lagos buzzing with excitement when it hosted its Annual Enterprise Summit and Grant Awards. Led by the founder, Yvonne Chioma Ofodile, the event was a celebration of the organization’s dedication to empowering women from all walks of life, aged between 22-45, through personal, leadership, and enterprise development.

Also held in commemoration of Women’s History Month, the summit brought together like-minded women who were eager to learn and grow their careers and businesses.

Themed ‘Switch It On’: Higher and Better, this year’s Summit empowered and equipped career professionals and entrepreneurs with practical tools and skills that will position them to actively seek growth opportunities, build global brands with the best ethical standards and culture– at the home front, at work, and in society.

It was a diverse, informative, and impactful gathering where all the issues hindering women’s interconnectivity were examined to enable them to move forward, united in strength to change their stories and that of the continent at large.

An array of nationally recognised women who spoke at the event include Manager, Legal, Prudent Energy & Services Limited, Olayanju Lawal; Filmmaker, entrepreneur, and TV star Diane Russet; Founder of financial wellness company Twelve, Tomi Balogun; Founder/CEO of Redrick Public Relations, Ijeoma Balogun; Managing Partner at GLG Communications, Omawumi Ogbe; Personal Finance Expert & Founder of FinTribe, Financial Jennifer, among other thought leaders.

Envisioned by Yvonne Chioma Ofodile – a renowned entrepreneur and Managing Director at Zetile Oil & Gas Ltd, 360 Woman Africa has built a crucial community that continues to champion a support system for young women. Through this community, Yvonne Chioma Ofodile leads a growing movement of women who can now easily access grants, training opportunities, mentoring, and access to business leaders across various sectors of the economy.

“The 360 Woman Africa project is very dear to my heart. As an operator in the business arena on the African continent myself, I have witnessed first-hand the numerous hurdles women have to scale just to give life to their entrepreneurial dreams. Too many of these dreams do not survive because of a system that is designed to put women-led enterprises and female entrepreneurs at a disadvantage” she said.

She also thanked organisations and individuals who have partnered with her on this journey to elevate the stands of women within and outside our society.

“Getting rid of these disadvantages has been our focus at 360 Woman Africa, and I’m extremely proud of what we’ve achieved over the years through partnerships with well-meaning individuals and organizations, for whom I’m grateful.”

The high point of the event was four lucky women entrepreneurs winning a whopping 5 Million Naira in equity-free grants. The 360 Woman Africa Women in Business Fund, sponsored by Nigeria’s largest steel manufacturing company African Industries Group (AIG), seeks to shrink the financial gaps in Africa, especially for women in business. Four Winners were selected from a pool of over 1500 applicants.

Osato El-Osemwingie, CEO of Elgazelle Foods Ltd (Osun state) emerged winner and clinched the grand prize of N2 million while Oluwatosin Ogunbanjo of Avenue 7 Leather goods (Lagos State) won the second prize and went home with N1.5 Million. Pricillia Omife of Pris-Edwina Farms (Enugu state) clinched the third price Kelechi Abiri of Reposebay Limited (Lagos) won N500,000 for the 4th place position.

The 360 Woman Africa Summit and Grant Awards event was supported by African Industries Group, Prudent Energy & Services Limited, Tangerine Africa, Sunlight, Royal Power Group, and Zetile Oil & Gas Ltd.