Foundation to empower 1,500 women in Lagos

A non-governmental organisation, Adonai Empowerment Foundation (AEF) will on Saturday, November 20, 2021, give N2.5 million worth of business grants to 50 women as well as distribute relief materials to over 1,500 women in Lagos.

The Foundation’s Lead Director, Michael Oladapo, disclosed this yesterday at a press briefing to announce the event tagged ‘Compassion 2021’ in Festac Town, Lagos.

He stated that the charity event, which is in its 31st edition, would hold at His Glory Event Centre, Second Avenue, Festac Town, stressing that it would focus on giving grants for micro and small businesses to women, providing medical checks and drugs for the women as well as distribution of relief materials.
 
Oladapo said: “We have been doing it for the past 30 years. It helps us to capture all our humanitarian effort, which is our outreach to widows, aged women, downtrodden, market women but particularly the disadvantaged women.  We reach out to women in dire need of assistance for their businesses.

“We give small grants to women to boost their businesses. They are to attend a compulsory skill acquisition and also a business talk from where we will find out their business knowledge,” he said.

Finance Director, Mrs. Linda Fams, also said: “This year, we plan to empower 50 women with grants to boost their businesses or start up new ones. Last year, we gave some women N100,000 each. And we also monitor what they do afterwards and reward those who have made good use of the grant by giving them more money or what we call booster grants.”

The Executive Coordinator, Pastor Richard Minet, said the relief materials that would be given out this year include foodstuff like rice, noodles and semolina; school bags for children and clothing materials.

He explained that the foundation holds the yearly event in partnership with donor agencies and good spirited individuals.

“Apart from donor agencies, we have also collaborated in the past with government agencies including the Nigeria Police Force, Ministry of Health and Lagos State Ministry of Women Affairs and Poverty Alleviation, among others,” he added.