Sunlight Set to Empower More Women
With the urbanisation rate of Nigeria at 4.3%, according to the African Population Studies, women living in rural areas lack access to decent nutrition, health, and social services.
However, Sunlight has stepped in to drive women empowerment towards improving the lives and wellbeing of Nigerian women. One of the ways these women are reached is through the “Shakti", a businessinclined women empowerment programme where Unilever products are provided for these women to start petty trading. These products serve as start-up capital which these women use to increase/start their trade and provide for their families. Over 3000 women have benefitted from the Shakti Programme, with an earnings growth of more than 400% and they are extending the support to other women in their network. Sunlight’s purpose bid to empower women are practical and direct.
In 2019, Sunlight also collaborated with Style House Files, the conveners of Lagos Fashion Week and through their Fashion Focus Fund supported two young female designers, Chechi Arinze and Titi Bello with the sum of N2, 000, 000 each towards the growth of their businesses. They were chosen for their passion and work towards empowering other designers; which is aligned with Sunlight’s purpose. subSaharan Africa’s fashion market is worth $31 billion with Nigeria accounting for 15% of that at $4.7 billion.
Regardless of these numbers, an average Nigerian designer finds it difficult to get capital to start or scale up due to the challenges that fashion entrepreneurs face, including being taken as seriously as other start-ups from other industries such as tech and agriculture.
Continuing to empower women through fashion, Sunlight will be the official cosponsor of Lagos Fashion Week 2019. For this partnership two designers Vathiswa by Keji and Zurizola Woman by Chibuzor, who train other women at SHF’s Fashion Focus Funds, have been chosen to make and showcase a Sunlight collection at the Lagos Fashion Week 2019 where all sales proceeds go back to the designers to grow their businesses.