Herconomy doubles cash prize for enterprise challenge -

Herconomy, a female-focused fintech start-up award female entrepreneurs for their innovative business solutions and ideas doubled its cash prize for its 2023 Enterprise Challenge.

Herconomy awarded the winner of its enterprise challenge N1.5 million which was doubled by Nkiru Achukwu Ayemere, CEO of Zephans.

This was made known during its annual conference at the British High Commission, Ikoyi, themed ‘Leveraging Technology to Enhance Financial Services for Women’.

The Herconomy Enterprise Challenge is a yearly enterprise challenge for women entrepreneurs. Formerly known as the AGS Tribe, Herconomy has been instrumental in funding women-owned SMEs in Nigeria via the Enterprise Challenge, effectively boosting female and youth entrepreneurship in the country.

This year, Juliet Ejovwokoghene Eguolo, creative director at TIPIN Recycle, a social enterprise emerged as the winner amongst the 12 finalists and carted away with a total of N3 million naira.

Eguol, a second-time applicant of the grant and an environmental advocate based in Delta state innovatively reuse waste materials such as tyres, carton, wood pallets and sacks to make eco-friendly products and furniture for homes and office use.

“I have followed Herconomy for years and the enterprise challenge process was amazing, it gave room for growth, improvement and learning. I have learned through the challenge and it has reshaped my business and life.

“Winning the grant is our major milestone for this year because It will enable us to set up our showroom/gallery and production center, this will increase visibility on what we do and produce. Putting us at the center of furniture making business in Delta state,” she said.

She said the grant will help train youths in Delta state that have shown interest in waste to wealth, “As a former road sweeper in Delta state, who saw the need to change the narrative on waste and Environmental degradation, my goal is to add value by redefining waste to create wealth.”

The conference had an array of speakers including Catriona Wendy Campbell Laleng, the first female British High Commissioner to Nigeria, who spoke about the impact of African women on the continent.

On the panel funding your startup: “bootstrap to scale”, founders and CEO who have diverse experience in funding and bootstrapping gave insight into their journey encouraging other female entrepreneurs present.