Fidelity Bank Plc has partnered with ImpactHER to host another round of free digital and artificial intelligence skills training for businesswomen, The Courage.
The training, organised by ImpactHER, was held for five days and 1,276 women entrepreneurs were trained in digital and AI skills.
Highlighting the importance of the training within Fidelity Bank’s strategy, the bank’s Divisional Head of Product Development, Osita Ede, said, “Available data points to the fact that women-led small businesses account for over 40 per cent of micro, small, and medium enterprises 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, which included ‘Getting Started with Email Marketing’; ‘How to Harness AI for Content Creation as a Small Business Owner’; and ‘Branding and Positioning’.
The founder of ImpactHER, Efe Ukala, stated, “Statistically, women and girls are 25 per cent less likely to leverage digital technology for basic purposes, four 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 $180bn 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.”
Participants praised the free programme’s practical approach and the immediate applicability of the skills learned. The August 2024 cohort brings the number of women entrepreneurs trained under the partnership to 5,719.
