The Digital African Woman, DAW, has launched a new ecosystem to help African women entrepreneurs scale their businesses across borders, with access to markets, finance and digital tools.

The Belgium-based social enterprise, which says it has empowered over 20,000 women and granted more than 6,000 microloans across 15 countries in Africa and Europe, said the new phase moves women from training to real economic opportunity.

The ecosystem is built around two major platforms – the DAW Cooperative and the DAW Digital Marketplace – complemented by a Masterclass Hub and Venture Studio.

Founder of DAW, HRM Khadijat Abdulkadir‎, said the initiative was born out of the need to solve access gaps facing women in business.

“When DAW began in Belgium, I was driven by a simple conviction: African women have the talent, ideas and ambition to build, but talent alone is not enough. Access matters – access to markets, technology, finance and the right people,” she said.

DAW launched the Cooperative in Abuja in 2025 with a high-level workshop hosted by the Belgian Ambassador to Nigeria. The event was attended by the EU Ambassador to Nigeria and ECOWAS, H.E. Gautier Mignot, Belgium’s Ambassador, H.E. Pieter Leenknegt, and former EFCC Chairman, Dr. Mrs. Farida Waziri, among other dignitaries.

In 2026, the organisation launched the DAW Marketplace in Kenya, in partnership with LEAP Africa, extending its footprint into East Africa. The launch brought together LEAP Africa’s Managing Director, Kehinde Ayeni, Director of Programmes and Partnerships, Amabelle Nwakanma, and beneficiaries of the marketplace.

Speaking at the Kenya launch, Abdulkadir said the next 10 years of DAW will focus on the continent.

“We have spent 10 years training and empowering entrepreneurs. The next 10 years is about providing a platform that gives them access. We talk about the African Continental Free Trade Agreement, but what does it mean when you cannot transact from Kenya to Namibia without logistics and payment challenges?” she said.

“If I’m a coffee maker in Gambia, I want to sell to someone in Nigeria without worrying whether it will get there.”

The DAW Marketplace offers entrepreneurs a personal digital storefront with a branded sub-domain, growth analytics to manage orders and track sales, integrated logistics for delivery, a secure digital wallet, and continuous training through the Masterclass Hub.

DAW also announced the Minister of State for Budget and Economic Planning, Dr. Doris Nkiruka Uzoka-Anite, as Ambassador of the Digital African Woman.

Dr. Uzoka-Anite, a medical doctor with an MBBS from the University of Benin, a TRIUM Global Executive MBA and Chartered Financial Analyst, CFA, designation, is a former banker and public sector leader who now contributes to Nigeria’s long-term development planning, including the vision to build a $1 trillion economy by 2030.

“She has consistently used her platform to speak for women and close the gender gap in economic leadership,” DAW said.

The organisation, which marked its 10-year anniversary with an International Women’s Day Empowerment Series in Lagos themed “Accelerate Her Power: Rights. Justice. Action,” said its mission remains to create pathways for women to lead, innovate and transform their communities through entrepreneurship.