[Nigeria] Union Bank, Mama Moni establish innovation hub for low-income women

Union Bank has partnered with MamaMoni Empowerment Foundation to set up an Innovation Hub for low-income women and girls from urban slum communities. The hub, which is located in Amuwo-Odofin area of Lagos State, was formally opened on the 21st of May, 2019. The vocational training program has been established to enable the girls and women to build sustainable means of living. It is anticipated that each year, over 400 underprivileged beneficiaries will receive training in vocational skills such as hairdressing, makeup, fashion designing, mobile farming and furniture making. Other courses to be offered at the hub include financial literacy, coding, and personal branding.
Speaking at the launch of the innovation centre, Ogochukwu Ekezie-Ekaidem, Head of Corporate Communications and Marketing at Union Bank, applauded the efforts of the MamaMoni team in improving the outcomes of women in underserved communities through micro loans and empowerment schemes. She said;
 “Union Bank is proud to have been a principal partner of the MamaMoni Foundation over the years. We identified this initiative as one that will help amplify our efforts to support women and drive financial inclusion. It is our hope that this innovation centre will go a long way in improving the lives of women from low-income communities and their families as they strive for a better future.”
In 2016, Nkem Okocha, founder of the MamaMoni Foundation emerged a winner in the LEAP Africa Social Innovators Programme (SIP) sponsored by Union Bank, receiving a grant of N1,000,000 to expand the MamaMoni operations. Since then, the Foundation has impacted over 6,000 women by providing them with microloans and basic vocational and financial literacy skills.
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