Businesswoman and philanthropist, Apostle Folorunso Alakija, has called on Nigerian women to move beyond having a voice to leading the transformation of society. She made this statement as the keynote speaker at the 10th Voice of Women Conference and Awards in Lagos. Alakija emphasized that women's voices must translate into solutions and engender lasting change. She noted that finding one's voice was only the beginning, and women needed capacity to make meaningful use of opportunities.
Alakija shared her personal journey from office administration and banking into fashion, oil and gas, philanthropy, and leadership. She stressed that women must progress from capacity to influence and ultimately to impact. According to her, visibility is not the same as influence, and women can be seen and still be insignificant. Alakija urged women to use their success to address social problems, mentor younger women, and provide solutions to communities. She emphasized that Nigeria needed women who would accept responsibility for the impact of their leadership.
Dr. Stella Okoli, founder of Emzor Pharmaceutical Industries, also spoke at the event. She said women could use their voices to build businesses and industries that would contribute to national development. Okoli shared her life journey "from vision to enterprise, from enterprise to value, from value to nation-building." She emphasized that a voice becomes truly powerful when it creates value. According to Okoli, a voice that builds a business, employs people, creates industries, solves national problems, and leaves something for the next generation becomes "a force of transformation."
Okoli recalled that she obtained a N6,000 loan from FirstBank to begin local production of Emzor Paracetamol. She urged young women not to wait until they had everything before starting their businesses. Okoli advised that women do not need to begin with everything, but they need to begin with something. She also urged the government to support local pharmaceutical manufacturers and young entrepreneurs. Okoli emphasized that Nigeria should develop the capacity to produce the raw materials needed for medicines.
Toun Okewale-Sonaiya, founder of the Voice of Women Empowerment Foundation and Executive Director of Women Radio WFM 91.7, welcomed attendees to the conference. She said the platform had moved from providing women with a space to speak to creating opportunities for their voices to produce tangible results. Sonaiya noted that women now needed more than a platform; they required opportunity, real access, resources, representation, and the power to turn their own voice into impact.
Sonaiya also called for grassroots women living with disabilities to be represented in decision-making spaces. She emphasized that women do not need to be spoken for; they need to be heard and be empowered to shape solutions. The founder drew attention to the story of Oluwatobi Raji, a survivor of trauma, rape, drug abuse, homelessness, and teenage marriage who now educates more than 150 out-of-school children in Mowo, Ogun State. She appealed for support to enable Raji to secure a permanent facility for the children.
Other speakers at the conference included Erelu Bisi Adeleye-Fayemi, former First Lady of Ekiti State, and Noimot Salako-Oyedele, Deputy Governor of Ogun State. They urged women to support and mentor one another, raise daughters who would dream and aspire, and raise sons who would respect women and understand responsibility. The speakers emphasized the need for women to demand dignity, mutual respect, confidence, and responsibility in relationships and to support other women rather than undermine them.
Key points
- * Alakija and Okoli emphasize the need for women to create value and make an impact in their communities. * The 10th Voice of Women Conference and Awards aims to provide a platform for women to produce tangible results. * Speakers at the conference call for women to support and mentor one another, and to use their voices to address social problems.
