NEPC pushes women exporters in S-south on post Covid-19 business opportunities

Women exporters in the South- South zone have been encouraged to rise above postcoronavirus challenges facing export business by harnessing opportunities in the sector to reposition their businesses.

It is believed that over 87 percent of businesses owned or run by women have been hit by the coronavirus pandemic.

At a sensitisation programme held in Port Harcourt, the Rivers State capital, last week, for women drawn from different states in the South-south region, the women wer acquainted with new trends and dynamics in the export business and the need to synergise with other stakeholders to access export opportunities.

Tagged ‘national survey and sensitisation on the impact of Covid-19 pandemic on women in export in Nigeria’, the programme featured lectures and interactive session where many questions were treated.

In her lecture entitled ‘impact of Covid-19 on womenowned businesses in Nigeria’, a resource person, Onu Leticia, pointed out that businesses owned by women suffered disruptions due to the Covid-19 pandemic.

She described womenmanaged businesses as the backbone of Nigeria’s economy, employing the largest number of workers in the country.

She thus advised the women exporters to take advantage of the mentorship and other services provided by the National Export Promotion Council (NEPC) to keep their businesses afloat. Such services, according to her, include certification trainings, facilitating market linkages, partnership with financial institutions and commercial banks, provision of skills and entrepreneurship development training, and creation of linkages with successful women-owned businesses.