- …FG rolls out Happy Woman App to connect women to finance, markets, skills, services
President Bola Ahmed Tinubu has expanded the Nigeria for Women Programme to reach 25 million beneficiaries nationwide, unveiling a digital platform designed to connect women to finance, skills, markets, essential services and government support.
The programme, now known as the Nigeria for Women Programme Scale-Up (NFWP-SU), was launched on Thursday at the State House, Abuja, with the President represented by Vice President Kashim Shettima.
Tinubu said Nigeria could not achieve sustainable growth without placing women at the centre of national planning, describing the scale-up as a key pillar of his administration’s social and economic inclusion agenda.
In a statement issued by Senior Special Assistant to the President on Media and Communications, Office of the Vice President, Stanley Nkwocha, Tinubu said “a nation that relegates its women is a nation bound for implosion. We have long understood this truth”.
“That is why this administration has not only placed women at the forefront of decision-making but has also entrusted them with leadership in causes that redeem our national promise. Today stands as proof of that commitment”, the President said.
The expanded initiative follows a pilot phase in six states which, according to the Presidency, reached over one million beneficiaries.
With the national scale-up, government introduced the Happy Woman App Platform, described as a secure digital interface that links women to empowerment opportunities, including finance, skills training, market access, protection services and social support.
The programme is headed by Dr. Hadiza Maina and is co-financed by the World Bank alongside the Federal Government and participating state governments.
It is designed to strengthen women’s economic empowerment, financial inclusion and social development nationwide.
Tinubu said the administration had set a “bold but achievable national ambition” of reaching 25 million Nigerian women through the programme, while calling on the World Bank to strengthen its financing, technical support and innovation partnerships to sustain the scale-up.
“Digital inclusion is no longer optional; it is foundational to effective service delivery and national competitiveness,” he said.
In a related policy announcement, the President designated 2026 as the “Year of Social Development and Families in Nigeria,” directing coordinated action across all levels of government.
The declaration, the Presidency said, followed a Memorandum of Understanding signed during Tinubu’s January official visit to Türkiye, aimed at strengthening family cohesion and social welfare systems.
The President commended the Federal Ministry of Women Affairs and Social Development for integrating technology into policy implementation and for reorganising social development into a more coherent system since the launch of the Renewed Hope Social Impact Intervention in Lafia last year.
He also praised state governors and the Nigeria Governors’ Forum for aligning federal vision with state-level execution, stressing that “national transformation succeeds when all levels of government move with shared purpose.”
Speaking at the launch, the Minister of Women Affairs and Social Development, Hajiya Imaan Sulaiman Ibrahim, described the initiative as a major shift in Nigeria’s governance framework.
“Today is a structural signal for Nigerian women, children, and families,” she said.
“It is a signal that under your leadership, women are no longer treated as beneficiaries at the margins of development, but as primary drivers of Nigeria’s economic, social, and democratic stability.”
The minister said the programme builds on the achievements of Phase I of the Nigeria for Women Project in six states, disclosing that 26,577 Women Affinity Groups were formed with over 560,000 members.
She added that participants recorded significant financial progress.
“Through the Women Affinity Groups formed, they collectively saved over ₦4.9 billion of their own money and have inter-loaned significantly to expand their businesses, cover health costs, and pay school fees,” she said.
Ibrahim described the new phase as a major continental investment in women’s empowerment, noting that it is a $540 million programme co-financed by the World Bank and the Federal and State Governments.
According to her, the initiative is designed to directly reach at least five million women across all 36 states and the Federal Capital Territory, while supporting national priorities such as job creation, food security, rural revitalisation and financial inclusion.
She also said the programme had strengthened civic identity among women beneficiaries.
“In Niger State for instance, during programme rollout, many women, for the first time in their lives, obtained formal identification in order to participate,” she said.
“The fastest and most accessible ID available to them was the voter card.”
She added that the newly registered women “became politically visible.”
On the digital rollout, the minister announced that the Happy Woman App would serve as a central hub for women’s empowerment.
“This platform will aggregate access to programmes, finance opportunities, skills training, protection services, and market linkages. Our target is 10 million verified women registrations within the next ten months,” she said.
Also speaking, the World Bank Regional Representative for Africa, Mr. Robert Chase, said the project was designed by the bank’s Social Policy Department to place women at the centre of development, stressing that investing in women remains the most impactful investment any nation can make.
Director of the Nigeria Country Office of the Bill and Melinda Gates Foundation, Mr. Uche Amaonwu, said empowering women directly translates to healthier families and safer communities, noting that women’s empowerment significantly reduces disease and insecurity at the household level.
The Minister of Agriculture and Food Security, Senator Abubakar Kyari, expressed his ministry’s readiness to collaborate on women-focused empowerment initiatives across the country.
Representative of the Senate President, Senator Ireti Kingibe, said the scale-up reflects the Federal Government’s commitment to addressing the needs of women, adding that the National Assembly would continue to enact legislation to expand women’s access to governance and economic resources.
Delivering a goodwill message on behalf of the Nigeria Governors’ Forum, the Deputy Governor of Katsina State, Malam Faruk Jobe, reaffirmed the commitment of state governments to providing counterpart funding for successful implementation of women-focused projects.
He disclosed that Katsina State, a participating state in the project, had earmarked ₦4 billion in its current budget to support the initiative.
