ALITHEIA SEEKS BETTER FINANCING FOR WOMEN-LED BUSINESSES

Alitheia Capital has called for financing solutions tailored to women-led businesses, saying many viable enterprises continue to face difficulties accessing formal capital despite having revenue and growth potential.

The call was made at the third edition of the W.O.M.A.N. conference organised by Alitheia Capital in Lagos. The event brought together more than 300 women-led businesses in manufacturing, agribusiness and nutrition, alongside investors, financial institutions, policymakers and development partners.

The conference focused on improving access to capital, energy, technology and markets while helping women-led businesses move from survival to sustainable growth.

Lagos State Commissioner for Agriculture and Food Systems, Abisola Olusanya, who represented Governor Babajide Sanwo-Olu, said women-led businesses continued to face significant barriers to appropriate financing and growth capital.

She said government, financial institutions, private equity and venture capital firms, development partners and business owners all had roles to play in closing the funding gap.

Alitheia Capital Managing Partner and Co-Founder, Tokunboh Ishmael, said the participation of more than 300 screened, revenue-generating businesses showed that many women-led enterprises had already demonstrated their readiness for formal investment.

She said the firm’s investment experience had shown the commercial potential of financing women-led businesses.

Alitheia said its investment-readiness programme provides entrepreneurs with support in financial management, governance, capital structuring and energy efficiency. It will also track participating businesses over the next 12 months, monitoring indicators including access to capital, revenue growth and the application of skills gained during the programme.