Broadcasting
Coca-cola Empowers Over 2 Million Women Entrepreneurs Across Africa through 5by20 Initiative
The Coca-Cola Company and its partners are proud to celebrate exceeding our 5by20 goal by enabling the economic empowerment of more than 6 million women around the world. 34% (just over 2 million) of those women enabled by the 5by20 program live and do business in Africa.
This 5by20 iniative is aimed to assist women entrepreneurs across the Coca-Cola value chain – agricultural producers, suppliers, distributors, retailers, recyclers, and artisans – overcome challenges when establishing and growing their business.
By providing access to business skills, financial services, assets and support networks of peers and mentors, women entrepreneurs are enabled to overcome social and economic barriers and succeed as entrepreneurs, while also helping create sustainable communities.
The Coca-Cola Company executed 5by20, a global initiative implemented across 33 countries in Africa, where we rolled out locally relevant initiatives.
The 5by20 goal was ambitious, and we knew that we could not achieve it alone. Over the last 10 years, we have worked with countless partners including our bottling partners, civil society organizations, government stakeholders, other private sector actors, and generous financial grants from The Coca-Cola Foundation to recipients within its Women’s Entrepreneur Empowerment priority giving tier.
The Coca-Cola Foundation has funded some of our 5by20 initiatives, and the Coca-Cola system has worked with several partners to implement over 300 programs in 100 countries to provide women entrepreneurs with business skills training, mentoring networks, financial services and other assets to help enhance their businesses and lives as well as provide more for their families.
Women empowerment and progress against all the Sustainable Development Goals requires the collective effort of governments, civil society, NGOs, and private sector organizations. Over the last 10 years, we have worked with countless partners who helped us bring our aspiration to life. Partnerships with organizations such as UN Women, Inter-American Development Bank (IDB), Women Enterprise Fund (WEF), Department for International Development (DFID), USAID, International Finance Corporation (IFC) MercyCorps, TechnoServe, Bill & Melinda Gates Foundation, Hand in Hand Southern Africa, and several other regional and local partners were critical to the success of the 5by20 program. These partnerships are a demonstration that through collective action we achieve more together than we can on our own.
In 2012, The Coca-Cola Company signed a global agreement with UN Women to enable the economic empowerment of women entrepreneurs in three pilot countries, which included South Africa. At the end of the four-year partnership in South Africa in December 2016, over 25,000 women micro-entrepreneurs had received business skills, leadership training, mentoring and peer networking skills, and access to finance.
According to a report by Harvard Kennedy School Corporate Social Responsibility Initiative, through this program the entrepreneurs increased their revenues by 40% on average and increased their confidence and leadership abilities within their communities.
In Kenya, a partnership with the Women Enterprise Fund (WEF) established in 2014 and rooted in a shared interest in creating a fair equitable environment to help women overcome barriers and build sustainable businesses, aimed to empower 1 million women through entrepreneurship training and access to capital investment. At the end of 2020, nearly 800,000 Kenyan women were empowered through the initiative.
In Nigeria, in partnership with the UK Department for International Development Girls Education, we launched the Educating Nigerian Girls in Nigeria Enterprise (ENGINE) value program, which aimed to strengthen the educational and economic opportunities of the Nigerian girl-child.
Nearly 21,000 young girls and women benefitted from this program and many more over the last 10 years. At the end of 2020, nearly 500,000 Nigerian women were empowered through the initiative.
“This International Women’s Day, we celebrate surpassing our goal to reach 5 million women, but we know that there is still work to be done,” says Patricia Obozuwa, Vice-President: Public Affairs, Communication, and Sustainability Coca-Cola Africa.
“Women entrepreneurs continue to face major hurdles hindering their successes, and we acknowledge that our work must therefore continue, particularly given the significant socio-economic disruption created by the pandemic in so many communities around the world.”
The Coca-Cola Company is a global organization, but a local business and deeply rooted in the local communities we proudly serve. We thrive as communities prosper and numerous studies from the United Nations and academic institutions have repeatedly proven that investment in women spurs economic growth and promotes sustainable development.
“By investing in women’s economic empowerment over the past decade, we have created shared value in hopes of a better shared future – enabling improved livelihoods for women, their families and their communities, while inclusively expanding our business,” says Obozuwa.
“We are proud about the ripple effects that these programs have had on the millions of lives we have touched and will continue to have over the years to come.”
As we look to the future, The Coca-Cola Company remains committed to its purpose to refresh the world and make a difference. Our efforts will be focused on supporting community resilience and as the impact of our continuing efforts multiplies with each passing year, we expect to reach many more women and underprivileged populations around the world.
Socio-Economic Rights and Accountability Project (SERAP) and the Nigerian Guild of Editors (NGE) have jointly sued the National Broadcasting Commission (NBC) over what they described as an “arbitrary, unconstitutional, and unlawful” threat to sanction broadcast stations and presenters.
The development was disclosed in a Sunday statement signed by Kolawole Oluwadare, deputy director, and Onuoha Ukeh, general secretary of the Nigerian Guild of Editors.
According to the statement, SERAP and NGE challenged a recent directive by NBC, warning presenters and journalists against “expressing personal opinions as facts,” “bullying or intimidating guests,” and failing to maintain neutrality.
The statement reads, “SERAP and the Nigerian Guild of Editors (NGE) have filed a lawsuit against the National Broadcasting Commission (NBC) over the arbitrary, unconstitutional, and unlawful ‘Formal Notice’, which threatens to sanction broadcast stations and presenters for allegedly ‘expressing personal opinions as facts, bullying or intimidating guests, or failing to maintain neutrality.’
“The NBC had recently threatened to sanction broadcast stations and presenters who ‘express personal opinions as facts’ or ‘bully and intimidate guests,’ claiming it had ‘identified a sustained increase in breaches of the 6th Edition of the Nigeria Broadcasting Code across news, current affairs, and political programmes.’”
In the suit marked FHC/L/CS/854/2026 filed last Friday at the Federal High Court in Lagos State, SERAP and NGE asked the court to determine whether the various provisions of the Nigeria Broadcasting Code relied upon by the NBC in the directive are inconsistent with the Nigerian Constitution 1999 (as amended) and the country’s international human rights obligations.
According to the statement, the groups disclosed that Femi Falana (SAN), human rights lawyer, would lead a team of senior lawyers to represent SERAP and NGE in the lawsuit.
SERAP and NGE asked the court to declare that the provisions of the 6th Edition of the Broadcasting Code used by the NBC are vague and constitute a fundamental breach of press freedom guaranteed by the Nigerian Constitution and international human rights standards.
The statement added, “SERAP and NGE are asking the court for a declaration that the provisions of the 6th Edition of the Broadcasting Code used by the NBC are vague and overly broad and constitute a fundamental breach of freedom of expression and media freedom guaranteed by the Nigerian Constitution and international human rights standards.”
The groups also sought an interim injunction to restrain the NBC, its agents and other authorities from imposing sanctions on broadcast stations and presenters based on what they described as “unlawful provisions of the 6th Edition of the Broadcasting Code”, pending the hearing and determination of the motion.
“SERAP and NGE are also seeking an order of interim injunction restraining the NBC, its agents or privies, whether jointly or severally or any other authority, from imposing sanctions on broadcast stations and presenters based on the patently unlawful provisions of the 6th Edition of the Broadcasting Code, pending the hearing and determination of the motion on notice filed simultaneously in this suit,” the statement concluded.
Globacom continues to celebrate African creativity as its sponsored programme African Voices on CNN International features London based photographer and multidisciplinary artist Ejatu Shaw this week. The episode highlights her journey, her art, and the stories behind her work.
Ejatu Shaw’s journey into photography began in 2013 during a family trip to Sierra Leone, a moment that sparked a passion which has since shaped her creative path. Born in 1996, the British Sierra Leonean artist later went on to earn a master’s degree in photography arts from the University of Westminster in 2020.
Her work explores identity in a personal and expressive way, drawing from her Islamic faith and African heritage. She is inspired by classic African studio photographers such as Malick Sidibé, Sory Sanlé, and Omar Yahia Barram. Through self-portraits and visual storytelling, she brings her memories and experiences to life.
Shaw’s talent continues to gain global recognition. In 2025, the British Fashion Council named her a New Wave Creative.
She has also photographed top names including Angela Bassett, Cynthia Erivo, and Usain Bolt, and worked on projects for major platforms like EBONY, The Guardian, The Sunday Times, and Vogue. She also designed the album cover for Craig David.
The programme will air on Saturday at 7:30 a.m. and 11:00 a.m. On Sunday, it will show at 3:30 a.m. and 6:00 p.m., with repeats on Monday at 3:00 a.m. and 5:45 p.m.
QEDNG Creative Powerhouse Summit will hold its second edition on August 11 in Lagos, bringing together leaders across the creative, business and policy spaces.
Convened by Mighty Media Plus, publishers of online newspaper QEDNG, the summit brings together conversations at the intersection of creativity, enterprise and influence, with a focus on strengthening Nigeria’s creative economy.
Reflecting on the inaugural edition, Iyanda said the summit drew participation from respected figures across sectors, including group managing director of SO&U Udeme Ufot as chairman and founder of The Africa Soft Power Group Dr Nkiru Balonwu as keynote speaker, alongside panellists such as filmmaker Kunle Afolayan, All Africa Music Awards (AFRIMA) founder Mike Dada and executive director of the National Film and Video Censors Board (NFVCB) Dr Shaibu Husseini who contributed to discussions on the direction of the creative economy.
“The first edition showed that there is a strong interest in serious engagement around the creative economy. We had contributions from experienced voices who helped set the tone for the kind of platform we are building,” Iyanda said.
Building on the success of its inaugural edition, the summit continues to expand its scope, attracting a diverse mix of industry leaders, entrepreneurs, policymakers and emerging talents.
“This summit is designed as a meeting point for ideas, influence and execution. It is not just about conversations, but about outcomes that strengthen the creative economy,” Iyanda added.
He noted that the timing of the summit is significant as the country’s creative sector continues to evolve.
“Nigeria’s creative sector has grown in visibility, but the structures that support it are still evolving. The QEDNG Creative Powerhouse Summit is part of the effort to bring clarity, direction and serious engagement to that growth,” he said.
The 2026 edition will feature keynote addresses, panel discussions and curated sessions addressing themes around innovation, growth, funding and the global positioning of Nigerian creative talent.
According to Iyanda, the long-term goal is to build a platform that remains relevant across generations.
“Our goal is to build a platform that remains useful over time, one that documents progress, connects stakeholders and contributes meaningfully to policy and practice,” he said.
Further details on speakers, partners and the full programme will be announced in the coming weeks.
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