ABUJA:The Director-General of the World Trade Organization Dr. Ngozi Okonjo-Iweala, has unveiled a $50 million global initiative to empower women entrepreneurs in digital trade, warning that rising unilateralism and protectionism are creating extremely challenging times for global commerce.
The Women Exporters in the Digital Economy (WEIDE) Fund, launched in partnership with the International Trade Centre, aims to equip women-led businesses in developing countries with the skills, resources, and networks needed to compete in global value chains.
Speaking yesterday in Abuja, Dr Ngozi Okonjo-Iweala noted that Nigeria’s low internet penetration just 45 per cent compared to the global average of 67 per cent could hamper the nation’s participation in the rapidly growing digital trade sector.
No nation can truly digitise without steady power and affordable internet, she stressed. More than half of Nigerians remain offline. This gap must be closed if we are to seize digital trade opportunities.”
She revealed that the WEIDE Fund will initially be rolled out in Nigeria, Jordan, Mongolia, and the Dominican Republic, following a competitive selection process involving over 600 business support organisations worldwide.
Nigeria’s entry, spearheaded by the Nigerian Export Promotion Council under Mrs. Nonye Ayeni, was selected on merit.
Over 67,000 Nigerian women applied for the first cohort. Originally designed to support 100 businesses, the programme expanded to 146 beneficiaries due to the high quality of applications.
Sixteen Booster Track entrepreneurs will receive up to $30,000 each and 18 months of technical assistance, while 130 Discovery Track entrepreneurs will get up to $5,000 each and a year of business support.
Beneficiaries span sectors including agriculture, IT, fashion, hospitality, beauty, and manufacturing. Okonjo-Iweala emphasised the need for inter-ministerial collaboration between the ministries of power, communications, women’s affairs, and trade to ensure success.
She also decried the underrepresentation of women in Nigeria’s ICT sector, which contributed 18 per cent to GDP in 2022 but counts only 30 per cent female-owned tech firms.
Urging policymakers to treat women’s empowerment as smart economics,she warned against customs duties on cross border digital trade that could hinder small exporters.
Addressing the awardees, she said: You earned this through hard work and vision. Use this moment to dream bigger, scale higher, and inspire others. When women succeed, communities and economies thrive.
