NCGC Targets N100bn Credit for Women After First-Year Gender Gap
Women accounted for just 16.8 per cent of the beneficiaries of credit mobilised by the National Credit Guarantee Company (NCGC) in its first year, highlighting the persistent gender gap in
In its inaugural year, the National Credit Guarantee Company (NCGC) provided credit guarantee support for 11,374 women-owned Micro, Small and Medium Enterprises (MSMEs) out of 67,512 end-borrowers. This figure represents a gender gap that the company aims to address with the launch of GuaranteeHer, a specialized credit guarantee framework targeting more than N100 billion in credit for female-led MSMEs over a period of five years.
The initiative, unveiled during a hybrid stakeholder engagement in Lagos, promises to unlock more than N100 billion in credit for women-owned businesses by reducing risk coverage to as much as 70 per cent, compared to the standard 60 per cent. Financial institutions participating in GuaranteeHer are expected to pass the benefits of lower risk to women borrowers through reduced interest rates, collateral requirements, and repayment periods.
The programme will commence with a 12-month pilot deploying between N5 billion and N10 billion through selected commercial and microfinance banks before expanding nationwide. Over its five-year lifecycle, NCGC aims to support over 20,000 women-owned businesses and generate upwards of 150,000 direct and indirect jobs. The initiative was endorsed by the Minister of Finance, Taiwo Oyedele, and the Minister of Women Affairs, Imaan Sulaiman-Ibrahim, reflecting a commitment to closing the gender gap in access to formal financing.
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