Nigeria’s NCGC aims to boost credit for women-owned businesses
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The National Credit Guarantee Company (NCGC) in Nigeria plans to provide over 100 billion Nigerian naira in credit to women-led businesses after data revealed women received only 16.8 percent of its initial funding.
In its first year, the NCGC provided 21.59 billion naira in risk cover through 19 financial institutions, enabling 46.95 billion naira in loans across Nigeria’s 25 states and the Federal Capital Territory. The company reached 67,512 borrowers, but only 11,374 were women.
To address this gap, the NCGC launched GuaranteeHer, a program specifically designed to increase credit access for female entrepreneurs. GuaranteeHer will offer increased risk coverage, up to 70 percent compared to the standard 60 percent, and incorporate donor funding to encourage lending. Participating banks are expected to lower interest rates and reduce collateral demands for women borrowers. The program will begin with a 12-month pilot, distributing between 5 billion and 10 billion naira through select banks before expanding nationally.
Over five years, the NCGC intends to support more than 20,000 women-owned businesses and create at least 150,000 jobs. The Ministers of Finance and Women Affairs both expressed support for the initiative at its launch in Lagos.
