Governor of the Central Bank of Nigeria (CBN), Olayemi Cardoso, has called on financial institutions and ecosystem players to develop innovative products to help close the $294 billion financing gap faced by women-owned micro, small, and medium enterprises (MSMEs).

This directive was given during the CBN’s commitment to the Women Entrepreneurs Finance Code (We-Fi) in Abuja.

Cardoso stressed the importance of learning from successful global models, stating, “We don’t have to reinvent the wheel. We can copy models that have worked elsewhere and adapt them to Nigeria.”

He also noted his personal commitment to gender equality, by referring to actions taken before assuming his current role that helped to bridge the gender gap in financial inclusion.

Looking ahead, Cardoso assured that the CBN leadership, along with its partners, is dedicated to bridging the gender gap in access to finance. “The big picture is to ensure Nigeria’s economy thrives,” he said, urging stakeholders to view this initiative as essential for the nation’s economic development rather than a gender-specific issue.

Temitope Fadeyi, Head of the Financial Inclusion Delivery Unit at the CBN, provided an overview of the We-Fi Code, emphasising the importance of collaboration between regulators, development finance institutions, and financial service providers to expand access to finance for women-owned businesses.

According to Fadeyi, 75 per cent of the potential market for women entrepreneurs in Nigeria remains untapped, contributing to the massive financing gap.

Fadeyi further outlined three key actions for stakeholders: committing leadership to champion the initiative, expanding support for women entrepreneurs, and gathering gender-disaggregated data to monitor progress.

The CBN, she said, is spearheading this initiative alongside partners such as the Development Bank of Nigeria and the Bank of Industry, with a call for private sector players and other stakeholders to join the national coalition.

With these efforts, the CBN, Development Bank of Nigeria (DBN) and the Bank of Industry (BoI) are aiming to unlock new opportunities for women-led businesses and drive economic growth in Nigeria.