Abuja, Nigeria – August 14, 2025 – Dr. Ngozi Okonjo-Iweala, Director-General of the World Trade Organization (WTO), officially launched the Women Exporters in the Digital Economy (WEIDE) Fund grant program in Abuja today, in partnership with the Nigerian Export Promotion Council (NEPC). The $50 million initiative, a joint effort by the WTO and the International Trade Centre (ITC), aims to boost women-led businesses in Nigeria and three other pilot countries—Dominican Republic, Jordan, and Mongolia—through digital trade and export support.
The event, held at an NEPC-hosted venue, marked Nigeria’s selection as the only African pilot beneficiary of the WEIDE Fund, launched in February 2024 at the WTO’s 13th Ministerial Conference in Abu Dhabi. Dr. Okonjo-Iweala emphasized the transformative potential of digital trade, noting that digitally delivered services reached $4.25 trillion in 2023. “Women must be at the forefront of this fast-growing segment of global commerce,” she said, highlighting the fund’s role in breaking market barriers and fostering job creation.
NEPC Executive Director Nonye Ayeni announced that over 100 women-led businesses have been trained in 2025 to enhance spice and herb exports through aggregation centers, aligning with President Bola Tinubu’s Renewed Hope Agenda to integrate women into the export ecosystem. The NEPC, the sole African Business Support Organization selected for the pilot phase, also registered 377 female exporters and conducted 252 capacity-building programs for 27,352 participants this year.
The WEIDE Fund offers Discovery Grants (up to $5,000) for early-stage businesses and Booster Grants (up to $30,000) for export-ready MSMEs, alongside training in digital skills and market access. Over 69,000 applications were received globally in the first call (April 22–May 18, 2025), with 236 women-led MSMEs selected, including Nigerian beneficiaries celebrated at today’s launch. For more details, visit www.wto.org/weidefund or contact weidefund@intracen.org.
