Yemisi Izuora
As part of its commitment to empower women with relevant entrepreneurship skills, leading financial institution, Fidelity Bank Plc, partnered with ImpactHER to host another round of free digital and Artificial Intelligence (AI) skills training for businesswomen. The training, organized by ImpactHER, was held from Monday, August 19 to Friday, August 23, 2024, and successfully trained 1,276 women entrepreneurs in digital and AI.
Situating the importance of the training within Fidelity Bank’s strategy, Osita Ede, Divisional Head, Product Development at Fidelity Bank Plc said, “Available data points to the fact that women-led small businesses account for over 40% of Micro, Small, and Medium Enterprises (MSMEs) in Nigeria. This underscores the critical role female entrepreneurs play in driving economic growth.”
“At Fidelity Bank, we believe that empowering female entrepreneurs with the relevant skills to run successful businesses would go a long way in helping individuals to grow, businesses to thrive and economies to prosper in line with our mandate.”
The online training, delivered by ImpactHER, covered various topics related to leveraging technology for successful businesses. These included “Getting Started with Email Marketing,” “How to Harness AI for Content Creation as a Small Business Owner,” and “Branding and Positioning.”
Efe Ukala, Founder of ImpactHER, explained the importance of providing free training: “Statistically, women and girls are 25% less likely to leverage digital technology for basic purposes, 4 times less likely to know how to program computers, and 13 times less likely to file for technology patents. This highlights the importance of equipping African women with digital skills that can be leveraged to scale their businesses. Data shows that Africa can add 180 billion dollars to its GDP by 2025 if we close the e-commerce digital gap. By offering this training at no cost and collaborating with supporters like Fidelity Bank to reach more women, we’re working to make these vital skills accessible to women entrepreneurs who can drive this economic growth.”
This collaboration demonstrates Fidelity Bank and ImpactHER’s commitment to providing free, high-quality training to women entrepreneurs. By combining ImpactHER’s expertise and Fidelity Bank’s network and support for small businesses, the program aims to create lasting impact in the business community.
Participants praised the free program’s practical approach and the immediate applicability of the skills learned. The success of this initiative paves the way for future collaborations aimed at empowering more women entrepreneurs across Nigeria through free, accessible training programs. The August 2024 cohort brings the number of women entrepreneurs trained under the partnership to 5,719.
Ranked as one of the best banks in Nigeria, Fidelity Bank is a full-fledged commercial bank with over 8.3 million customers serviced across its 251 business offices in Nigeria and the United Kingdom as well as on digital banking channels.
The bank has won multiple local and international awards including the Export Finance Bank of the Year at the 2023 BusinessDay Banks and Other Financial Institutions (BAFI) Awards, the Best Payment Solution Provider Nigeria 2023 and Best SME Bank Nigeria 2022 by the Global Banking and Finance Awards; Best Bank for SMEs in Nigeria by the Euromoney Awards for Excellence 2023; and Best Domestic Private Bank in Nigeria by the Euromoney Global Private Banking Awards 2023.