Layal Jade Tinubu has awarded business grants worth over ₦70 million to 20 women entrepreneurs through the second edition of the Be Empowered initiative, a programme she leads in partnership with the Noella Foundation.

The event took place on Saturday, April 12, 2025, in Lagos, Nigeria, bringing together over 150 guests for a one-day summit focused on strengthening women-led enterprises.

The 2025 edition received more than 2,500 applications from across the country. From this group, 200 business owners were shortlisted to attend the summit, while five finalists were invited to pitch their businesses to a panel of judges on Thursday, April 10. Nine winners were announced at the summit—some selected from the pitch session and others based on their applications. An additional 11 participants were later selected for grants, bringing the total number of recipients to 20.

In her welcome remarks, Layal Tinubu, who is also the Founder and Managing Director of Tots Toys and Co-founder of the Noella Foundation, underscored the importance of empowering women economically.

“These financial empowerments will help them start, sustain, and scale,” she said, speaking on her vision for the initiative.

The summit featured sessions with business leaders, including Elizabeth Isiorho, Founder of BETH Model Management, and Ibiyinka Ibru, CEO and Lead Financial Advisor at Moneystart. A fireside chat with Tinubu highlighted her own entrepreneurial journey, her transition from corporate life, and her experience balancing business and family responsibilities.

Participants from the 2024 edition returned to share their progress, noting that the programme had transformed their businesses. They described how the combination of grant funding and a focused bootcamp enabled them to build stronger structures, improve operations, and pursue business growth with greater clarity.

This year’s 20 grant recipients completed a five-week boot camp prior to the summit. The training focused on strategic planning, financial management, operational efficiency, and scalability, and was delivered by experts in various fields.

According to organisers, the Be Empowered initiative aims to provide more than just funding by equipping women entrepreneurs with the practical tools and knowledge needed to build resilient, long-term businesses.