EmpowerHER workshop pushes women from ‘hustle to legacy’, equips entrepreneurs with skills, capital

By Chioma Obinna

A bold push to turn young women’s hustle into long-term, wealth-building enterprises took centre stage at the weekend as the Love for Change Women Foundation (LCWF) held its inaugural EmpowerHER Entrepreneurship Workshop, equipping participants with the skills, structure and capital required to build sustainable businesses.
The event brought together young businesswomen for what organisers described as a “transformational day of clarity, confidence and community”, with facilitators urging participants to move beyond survival mode and begin building businesses that can outlive them.
Founder of LCWF, Modupeola Bello Olukoya, said the initiative was created to empower women with tools that give them financial independence and generational stability.
“As women, having a consistent source of income is essential because it gives you the freedom to make empowered decisions,” she said. “We want young women to build sustainable, well-structured businesses and be financially independent. This workshop helped them reflect, refine their ideas and build with clarity and intentionality.”
Olukoya added that watching participants leave with sharpened business plans “reminded us why this work matters”.
“This isn’t just about a workshop,” she said. “We are building a movement of women who support each other, share their resources and rise together.”
The workshop featured keynote speaker Olamitoyosi Babatunde, who challenged the women to break out of short-term thinking.
“The goal is for these women to move from thinking about sustenance to thinking about legacy,” she said. “Make money, keep the money, grow it and reinvest it. If we talk about generational curses, then we must also decide to be generational blessings.”
She stressed that Nigerian women were already demonstrating resilience and innovation.
“It is rare today to find a Nigerian woman sitting idle,” she said. “Women work hard, and a woman can make her own money without doing anything underhand. Men should not feel threatened.”
Babatunde also urged government to dismantle structural barriers that still limit women’s autonomy.
“There are laws and practices that still require a man’s approval for a woman to make certain decisions—even to rent an apartment,” she said. “The environment must be conducive if women are truly to thrive.”
The Workshop coordinator, Bukola Adeyemi, said the programme was designed to go beyond training by also providing capital.
“This is not just another programme,” she said. “Many women have businesses but lack the tools to transfer these businesses to their children. We want them to move from hustle to legacy.”
Adeyemi announced that LCWF, working with partners including BLGN, provided grants to 10 women amounting to more than N500,000.
“The Mama BC recipients are taking home N50,000 each, while the Tomi category receives N100,000 because of their potential to leverage technology,” she explained.
She added that the foundation would follow up on all beneficiaries to ensure growth and accountability.
Guest Mentor Iyene Adasa urged the women to stay resilient and structured.
“Beyond starting a side hustle, you can grow it into a legacy business,” she said. “Challenges are not designed to break you; they are there to build you.”
For many participants, the event marked a turning point.
Fashion designer Zabiola Digbite said the training answered her biggest business challenge.
“I had issues managing staff, and the speaker nailed it,” she said. “I will start applying what I learnt immediately.”
Another participant, Kelly, a bag designer, said the workshop reshaped her understanding of building a legacy.
“I used to think my daughter was too small to learn anything, but now I know she must see what I do,” she said. “I want to grow from sewing alone to owning a shop and employing people.”
The event followed the completion of LCWF’s eight-week virtual EmpowerHER Bootcamp, which covered digital entrepreneurship, branding and marketing, with outstanding participants receiving business-support grants.
Since its founding in 2014, LCWF has focused on breaking inter-generational poverty by equipping marginalized women with tools, training and community support to build stable, independent futures.
With the workshop’s mix of training, mentorship and funding, stakeholders say the foundation has taken a major step toward building a new wave of women-led legacy businesses across Nigeria.

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