The Board of Directors of the African Development Bank Group (AfDB) has approved a $61 million financing package for the Development Bank of Nigeria (DBN) to enhance access to affordable credit for women-owned and women-led small and medium-sized enterprises (WSMEs), with a strong emphasis on the agricultural sector.
The facility, approved on April 29, consists of three components: a $50 million gender-focused line of credit, an $8 million concessional facility under the Agri-Food SME Catalytic Financing Mechanism (ACFM), and a $3 million grant from the Affirmative Finance Action for Women in Africa (AFAWA) initiative, supported by the Women Entrepreneurs Finance Initiative (We-Fi).
More than 95 percent of the total financing is earmarked for women-owned and women-led businesses. The funds will be channeled through DBN’s network of participating financial institutions, combining long-term financing, concessional resources, partial credit guarantees, and capacity-building support to strengthen MSME lending.
“This operation reflects the African Development Bank’s commitment to unlocking economic opportunities for women,” said Dr Abdul Kamara, Director General of the AfDB Nigeria Country Office. “By working through DBN to reach women-owned businesses in agriculture, clean energy, healthcare, and beyond, we are not just expanding access to credit; the Bank is investing in the engine of Nigeria’s inclusive economic transformation.”
The initiative highlights a performance-based incentive structure under AFAWA designed to increase the number of eligible women-owned enterprises and raise the share of women-focused lending in DBN’s MSME portfolio.
The approval builds on a longstanding partnership between the AfDB and DBN, which dates back to the AfDB’s involvement in DBN’s establishment through start-up equity, long-term financing, and governance support, in collaboration with the Federal Government of Nigeria and other partners.
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