WAPA, LSETF Deepen Partnership To Boost Funding, Financial Literacy For Lagos Women
The Lagos State Ministry of Women Affairs and Poverty Alleviation (WAPA) has reaffirmed its commitment to strengthening collaboration with the Lagos State Employment Trust Fund (LSETF) to expand access to funding, financial literacy and enterprise support for women across the state.
The assurance was given by the Commissioner for Women Affairs and Poverty Alleviation, Hon. Bolaji Cecilia Dada, during a courtesy visit by the Executive Secretary of LSETF, Mrs. Feyisayo Alayande, and her team to the ministry.
Dada commended LSETF for sustaining impactful empowerment programmes for entrepreneurs, artisans and small business owners, describing the renewed partnership as strategic and vital to advancing women’s economic development.
She disclosed that WAPA operates 19 Skills Acquisition Centres and the Women Development Centre, with curricula developed by the Lagos State Technical and Vocational Education Board (LASTVEB). She urged LSETF to align its capacity-building initiatives with the ministry’s training framework to better prepare graduates for funding opportunities.
According to the commissioner, early exposure to funding requirements will help students meet necessary conditions before graduation, noting that while the ministry provides start-up equipment to some graduates, collaboration with LSETF would bridge existing gaps through structured funding and business support.
Dada also highlighted WAPA’s life-skills and empowerment programmes targeting vulnerable groups, faith-based organisations, parents of out-of-school children, wives of military personnel and retiring civil servants, encouraging LSETF to explore partnerships in these areas.
In her remarks, Alayande praised WAPA’s transparency and commitment to women’s empowerment, stressing the need to increase awareness of LSETF programmes among trainees. She announced the reopening of the application portal and advised applicants to obtain required documents such as LASRRA ID, LIRS TIN, NIN and BVN.
She further proposed structured financial literacy and bookkeeping sessions to strengthen business sustainability, noting that improved financial management would enhance loan performance and market access. Both agencies agreed to organise sensitisation and financial education sessions across WAPA’s centres to guide prospective beneficiaries.
