By Luminous Jannamike

ABUJA – Over 700 women entrepreneurs, procurement professionals, development agencies, and civil society leaders will meet in Abuja to demand a 30% procurement quota for women-owned businesses in Nigeria.

The Women Conference 2025, organized by DO Take Action and the World Bank, will focus on addressing barriers to women’s economic participation.

Briefing journalists in Abuja, Precious Ebere Chinonso-Obi, Co-Founder of DO Take Action, emphasized the need for action.

“Women-led businesses are engines of economic growth, with a market share of about 40% of businesses in Nigeria, but they continue to be shut out of procurement opportunities. We are calling for intentional policies, starting with a 30% procurement target, to level the playing field and unlock the full economic potential of women in Nigeria,” she said.

The conference, themed ‘Scaling Up Impact: Women’s Economic Empowerment Through Affirmative Procurement,’ will discuss policies, partnerships, and accountability measures to implement the quota.

It builds on the Scaling Women Economic Empowerment through Procurement (SWEEP) program, which has worked to enhance women’s access to procurement opportunities.

Organisers stress that achieving the target requires political will and dedicated procurement pipelines.

“Strong political will, accountability mechanisms, and dedicated procurement pipelines are essential to achieving this target,” they stated.

If successful, the quota could serve as a model for other countries seeking to address gender disparities in economic participation. The event will take place on May 13 in Abuja, the nation’s capital.