All You Need to Know about the Access Bank Womenpreneur Pitch-A-Ton Season 5
Are you a woman looking to grow and scale your small business? Have you been looking forward to getting business mentorship and or a loan-free grant? Then, the Access Bank Womenpreneur Pitch-A-Ton-2023 season 5 is for you!
With the Access Bank Womenpreneur Pitch-A-Ton Season 5, you stand a chance to win up to 5 million naira business grants and an IFC-certified mini-MBA.
In this blog post, I will show you all you need to know about this program. Do you know that application closes on August 11th, 2023? Ensure you read this post to the end so you don’t miss out on this amazing opportunity
Now, let’s do a background history
Background History of the Access Bank Womenpreneur Pitch-A-Ton Season 5
Access Bank is a leading bank in Nigeria and one of its focuses is to empower women to grow their business, bridging the gender gap when it comes to access to funds through the W Initiative.
In 2019, she launched the Womenpreneur Pitch-A-Ton to support women in business. In conjunction with the International Finance Corporation (IFC); a member of the World Bank Group, the first maiden edition provided a free mini-MBA certification for 50 women entrepreneurs in Nigeria as well as financial grants worth 9 million naira to the top 3 applicants.
So far, the initiative has progressed to providing mini MBAs to over 300 women entrepreneurs across Africa and 45 million in grants in the past three years.
Did you miss out on the 1st-4th edition? Good news, you have another opportunity as Access Bank has launched its 5th edition, which is set to hold this year (2023).
The 5th Edition of the Womenpreneur Pitch-A-Ton-2023
The 5th season of this initiative holds this year (2023) and seeks to provide mini-MBA certification to another 120 women entrepreneurs in Nigeria as well as grants worth over 45 million naira to women in small and medium enterprises(WSMEs), according to a post on their website
According to Access Bank Management, the W Initiative is aimed at inspiring, connecting, and empowering women while riding on the Access Bank’s vision to be the bank of choice for women in the markets and communities being served. In other words, the program is designed to provide female-owned businesses across Africa an opportunity to access finance, world-class business training as well mentoring opportunities.
The 2023 womenpreneur pitch-A-Ton officially kicked off on Monday, June 26, and will close on August 11, 2023.
Who is Qualified to apply for this program?
The following criteria are what qualify one to apply for the program:
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You are female
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You have an Access Bank account
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You have an existing business for at least one year with at least 50% female ownership
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You are between the age range of 18-55 years
If you meet the 4 criteria outlined above, then you’re eligible to apply for the grant.
How Do I Apply for the Access BankWomenpreneur Pitch-A-Ton Season 5?
Now, you are sure that you are eligible to apply for this program. Here is how to apply
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Visit the official website www.womenpreneur.ng
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Fill out the online application on the website
Kindly note that application is free and you don’t need to pay any fee to apply. Ensure, no one scams you on this.
What next after application?
According to Access Bank management, all online applications will be screened by independent business experts to 500 candidates. These candidates will be required to send in a sixty-second video pitch for the opportunity to be selected as part of the final top 120 candidates.
After Selection Process
The top 120 candidates will be selected to participate in this 5th edition. They would undergo a 3-month training comprising 8 weeks of mini-MBA training in collaboration with IFC.
At the end of the 8 weeks, there would be pitching sessions to a pan-Africa jury panel where the top finalists will pitch their businesses, and will stand an opportunity to win financial grabs and other consolation prizes.
Conclusion
The Access Bank Womenpreneur Pitch-A-Ton Season is live and you stand a chance to win up to 5 million naira in business grants, a mini-MBA certificate, and business mentoring and coaching opportunities.
The Womenpreneur Pitch-A-Ton is a great opportunity for women entrepreneurs to grow their businesses and achieve their goals. If you have a woman-owned business in Nigeria, I encourage you to apply.