The Muslimah Entrepreneurship Business Forum was set up to bridge the business gap for Muslim women entrepreneurs in Nigeria, an official said on Friday in Ilorin.
Convener of the Forum, Mrs Fatima Soliu, told a news conference the forum was formed to support and encourage female business owners.
She said the forum was meant to bridge the gap between Muslim female business owners and their counterparts around the world.
“We noticed that the gap for the Islamic female business owners is very wide, and we want to bridge the gap.
”This is why we brought people of like minds to support, encourage and educate ourselves in order to grow our businesses.
”We are changing the narrative that women can not be game-changers and successful business owners,” Soliu who is the Chief Executive Officer (CEO) of Baytul Tajmeel Enterprises said.
She disclosed that the forum which was created in January 2023 has grown with over 1,000 members across the country.
”We started in January 2023 and we have been able to offer business orientation, soft loans and empowerment for our members.
”In March 2023, we held the first edition of the ‘Muslimahpreneur Trade Affair’ which witnessed over 200 vendors with over 40,000 customers.
”On Sept. 10, we had a business summit where we brought experts from different business sectors and they shared their experiences and tutored our members on how to navigate the business world,” Soliu said.
The Baytul Tajmeel CEO added that the forum was planning to hold the second edition of the Muslimahpreneur Trade Affair from Nov. 2 to Nov. 4.
Co-convener of the forum, Mrs Morufah Oladosu, said the forum was also poised to encourage members to do their business in the ways permitted by Islam (halal).
”We are guided by the rulings of Islam and we are poised to do our businesses in the ‘halal’ way.
”We avoid all forms of usury (interest) in our businesses as it is against the rulings of Islam.
”And, we have been coping because we have some of our members that contribute willingly and we use the money as soft loans for our members.
”So far, we have empowered six women through our soft loans,” she said.
Oladosu who is the CEO of MSignature Beauty World, then urged government and private individuals to encourage the forum by helping it financially to help its members.
