In a matter of days, Lagos will witness the first conference of its kind on the African soil that will assemble some of the most successful female entrepreneurs and business leaders from diverse African countries and beyond, under one roof on a fundamental agenda.

The event is Africa Women Innovation and Entrepreneurship Forum (AWIEF) holding at Lagos Oriental Hotel on 8th and 9th September 2015. AWIEF will also feature two Pre-Conference business capacity building workshops on 7th September. Speakers at the event include former VP Africa Region, World Bank & Senior Economic Advisor Open Society Foundation, Nigeria’s Oby Ezekwesili and Adjaratou Fatou Ndiaye, UN Women Deputy Representative to Nigeria and ECOWAS. Others are: Onari Duke, Director, Empretec Nigeria Foundation (UNCTAD); Ndidi Nwuneli, Founder/Director, LEAP Africa & Partner, Sahel Capital, Nigeria; Lucia Quachey, President, Ghana Association of Women Entrepreneurs (GAWE) & Secretary General, African Federation of Women Entrepreneurs; Divine Ndhlukula, Founder/Managing Director, SECURICO Security Services, Zimbabwe; Audrey Joe-Ezigbo, Co-Founder/Executive Director, Falcon Corporation Ltd & FalconGaz Ltd; Sabetha Mwanbenja, Managing Director, Covenant Bank for Women Tanzania Ltd, Tanzania; Onyinye Ikenna-Emeka, General Manager, Enterprise Marketing, MTN Business Nigeria; Winifred Akpani, Managing Director/CEO, NorthWest Petroleum & Gas Co. Ltd; Shimite Bello, President, Quintessential Business Women Association Candide Bamezon-Leguede, President, ECOWAS Federation of Business Women and Entrepreneurs (ECOWAS-FEBWE); Dolapo Kukoyi, Partner, Detail Commercial Solicitors; Njideka Harry, Founder/President, Youth for Technology Foundation; Fatoumata Ba, Managing Director, Jumia Nigeria & Founder, Jumia Ivory Coast etcetera.

AWIEF will assemble female enterprise and industry leaders from Nigeria, Ghana, Côte d’Ivoire, Tanzania, Togo, South Africa, Equatorial Guinea and many other African countries, with a great number coming from the African Diaspora.

The event which is the biggest gathering of Africa’s top female entrepreneurs and industrial giants, has the primary aim of generating innovative ideas and systemic changes in the African business environment, in order to reduce the disadvantages faced by women within the African business turf.

According to Irene Ochem, AWIEF Founder and Managing Director of ICO Conferences & Events Ltd, “it is now widely accepted that investing in women has an extensive impact on the building of strong and thriving societies. AWIEF will address women’s critical role in economic leadership and development and discuss opportunities to unleash their full potential to unlock Africa’s sustainable growth”.

Going further, Ochem explains that AWIEF will among other things highlight how educational tools, financial resources and micro and small enterprise opportunities can be expanded to support women’s inclusion and full economic participation and entrepreneurship.

Mrs Irene Ochem noted further that “the time has come for a paradigm shift; Africa must not continue suffering as a continent by disadvantaging women who constitute 50 per cent of its core producers and entrepreneurs. The time has come for women to take the gauntlet and change the situation for better”

AWIEF 2015 is produced and hosted by ICO Conferences & Events Ltd, in partnership with International Women’s Society (IWS) Lagos, LEAP Africa and Business School Netherlands (BSN).