Apply Now: DBN Launches DAWN Initiative to Boost Women-Owned Businesses
The Development Bank of Nigeria (DBN) has launched the DBN Action for Women in Nigeria (DAWN) initiative to help women-owned and women-led businesses access financing, targeted grants, technical assistance and new market opportunities.
The initiative was unveiled by DBN Managing Director and Chief Executive Officer, Dr Tony Okpanachi, at the bank’s seventh Annual Lecture Series held at the Congress Hall of Transcorp Hilton in Abuja on October 21, 2026.
The event, themed “From Policy to Prosperity: Translating Economic Reforms into MSME Growth,” brought together policymakers, financial institutions, entrepreneurs and development partners to explore ways to translate Nigeria’s economic reforms into tangible benefits for micro, small and medium-sized enterprises (MSMEs).
According to Okpanachi, DAWN was developed to address the challenges preventing women entrepreneurs from expanding their businesses, particularly the difficulties associated with accessing affordable finance and reaching larger markets.
He noted that financing alone was insufficient to help women-led enterprises scale, emphasising the need for complementary support that strengthens business capacity, reduces lending risks and connects entrepreneurs with customers and commercial opportunities.
What DAWN Offers Women Entrepreneurs
The DAWN initiative combines several forms of financial and non-financial support to help women-owned businesses establish stronger foundations and achieve sustainable growth.
Its key components include:
- Business financing: Improved access to funding through participating financial institutions and other delivery channels.
- Credit guarantees: Risk-sharing mechanisms designed to encourage lenders to provide financing to women-led enterprises.
- Targeted grants: Financial support linked to defined outcomes and business development objectives.
- Technical assistance: Capacity-building support to improve business readiness, management and growth prospects.
- Market linkages: Connections to customers, trade platforms, business associations and other commercial networks.
The programme is designed to address multiple barriers to business expansion rather than focusing exclusively on access to loans.
DBN expects the integrated approach to improve women entrepreneurs’ ability to secure funding, strengthen their operations and compete in wider markets.
Priority Sectors
The initiative will focus on businesses operating in five broad sectors:
- Agriculture and exports.
- Healthcare.
- Arts and creative industries.
- Technology.
- Green businesses.
Through these priority areas, DAWN aims to expand economic opportunities for women entrepreneurs across different industries while supporting enterprises with growth potential.
The initiative will work through commercial banks, microfinance institutions, financial technology companies, aggregators and cooperatives, alongside direct channels. Participating financial institutions are also expected to benefit from support that enables them to lend more sustainably to women-owned businesses.
DBN Strengthens Financing for MSMEs
The launch of DAWN forms part of DBN’s broader strategy to improve access to finance and strengthen the capacity of Nigerian MSMEs.
Okpanachi disclosed that the bank had cumulatively disbursed ₦1.4 trillion to MSMEs through 84 participating financial institutions as of December 2025. The bank also reported that its interventions had contributed to the creation of approximately 1.6 million jobs nationwide.
Under its new five-year strategy, DBN aims to reach more than two million MSMEs, with specific targets for women-led businesses, youth-led enterprises and businesses operating in underserved states.
The bank is also working to ensure that financial institutions extend credit to businesses in sectors and locations where access to funding remains limited.
AfDB Signs $61 Million Gender-Focused Credit Facility
Another major development at the annual lecture was the signing of a $61 million gender-focused financing package between DBN and the African Development Bank (AfDB).
The package is designed to expand access to finance for women-owned and women-led businesses across Nigeria, with particular attention to agricultural enterprises and underserved groups.
The financing package comprises a $50 million gender-focused line of credit, an $8 million facility supporting agricultural small and medium-sized enterprises, and a $3 million grant under the AfDB’s Affirmative Finance Action for Women in Africa (AFAWA) initiative.
The partnership complements DAWN’s broader objective of helping women entrepreneurs overcome financial barriers and build sustainable businesses.
How Women Entrepreneurs Can Benefit
Women business owners interested in the DAWN initiative should monitor official announcements from the Development Bank of Nigeria for information on eligibility criteria, application procedures, participating financial institutions and the availability of grants or other support.
Important: DBN has not yet publicly specified the grant amounts, application deadline or complete beneficiary eligibility requirements in the launch announcement. The initiative’s launch should therefore not be interpreted as confirmation that a general grant application window is currently open.
For updates on financing opportunities and MSME support programmes, visit the official Development Bank of Nigeria website.
