Business
UBA Business Series Promotes Women’s Enterprise, Leadership
UBA Gen.W Business Series brings female leaders together in Lagos to discuss evolving roles of women in leadership, entrepreneurship and innovation
Africa’s Global Bank, United Bank for Africa (UBA) Plc, on Thursday hosted an engaging edition of its quarterly Business Series, bringing together accomplished female leaders and entrepreneurs to discuss the theme “Gen.W: The Evolved Woman.”
Also read: UBA Unveils Investment and Banking Platform for Diaspora Nigerians
The hybrid event, held at UBA House in Marina, Lagos, and streamed live to participants across the globe, formed part of activities marking International Women’s Month.
The UBA Gen.W Business Series explored the evolving role of women in leadership, business and innovation, highlighting how African women are redefining success while creating sustainable impact across industries.
Opening the session, UBA’s Group Head of Customer Experience, Michelle Nwoga, described the “evolved woman” as someone who actively shapes her environment and ensures her voice is heard.
“The evolved woman is one who is taking charge, volunteering and making her voice heard above the noise,” Nwoga said.
The event was moderated by media personality and actor Tobi Bakre, who reflected on the concept of the evolved woman as a journey rather than a destination.
“When I think about the evolved woman, I do not see a checklist or a finish point. It is a woman grounded in her own self-worth who also creates space for other women to believe that they belong,” he said.
Panel discussions featured prominent voices including founder of ORÍKÌ Group, Joycee Awosika; digital entrepreneur and media personality Tomike Adeoye; founder of Fine-Funky, Olufunke Davies; and broadcaster Ayo Mairo-Ese.
The speakers shared personal experiences about navigating entrepreneurship, leadership challenges and growth.
Awosika noted that the evolved woman understands her value and is confident enough to create opportunities rather than wait for them.
“That woman does not need to ask to sit at the table. She is creating her own table and adding value. As your company grows, you must grow too,” she said.
Adeoye added that modern women are redefining ambition by building their own platforms and speaking openly about their journeys.
“The question of what a woman brings to the table is now obsolete because the evolved woman is bringing her own table,” she said.
Broadcaster Ayo Mairo-Ese encouraged women to confidently share their achievements, warning that many are often reluctant to showcase their impact despite doing remarkable work.
“A lot of women are doing phenomenal work and sometimes hesitate to share their stories. As an evolved woman, you must find your unique offering and remain open to collaboration,” she said.
Entrepreneur Olufunke Davies highlighted persistence as a key ingredient in success, explaining that discovering the right business path often requires experimentation and continuous learning.
The Group Head of Brands, Marketing and Corporate Communications at UBA, Alero Ladipo, praised the panelists and attendees for their contributions and reiterated the bank’s commitment to empowering women.
Ladipo also highlighted the bank’s Gen W platform, a lifestyle initiative designed to support women with expert insights, practical resources and access to discounted products and financial support.
“Through expert insights, real stories and practical resources, the platform connects women who are building brands, creating businesses, growing careers and leading across industries,” she said.
The UBA Gen.W Business Series continues to serve as a powerful platform for mentorship, knowledge exchange and thought leadership.
Also read: UBA Celebrates Modern African Women with Special Business Series Edition
By bringing together influential voices and practical experiences, the bank aims to inspire a new generation of women leaders and innovators across Africa and beyond.
TotalEnergies and Nigerian independent energy company AMNI International have taken the Final Investment Decision on the $800 million Ima Gas Project, more than five decades after the gas field was discovered.
The Ima Gas Project, located in shallow waters across Oil Mining Leases 112 and 117 near Bonny Island, Rivers State, is expected to begin production in 2028 and reach a plateau of 350 million cubic feet of gas per day.
The development is expected to play a major role in supplying feed gas to Nigeria LNG, with the Ima field projected to provide about one-third of the additional gas required for the ongoing Train 7 expansion.
Train 7 is expected to increase Nigeria LNG’s liquefaction capacity from 22 million tonnes per annum to 30 million tonnes per annum, strengthening Nigeria’s capacity to process and export liquefied natural gas.
The Ima field was discovered in 1973 but remained undeveloped for more than 50 years. The Final Investment Decision provides the commercial and financial basis for finally developing the long-dormant resource.
Under the development plan, TotalEnergies will operate the project with a 40 per cent interest, while AMNI will hold the remaining 60 per cent.
The field will be developed using a single offshore platform connected to Nigeria LNG’s facility on Bonny Island through a 22-kilometre pipeline.
TotalEnergies said its investment in the project is more than $600 million, while the Federal Government described the overall Final Investment Decision as an $800 million investment.
At the FID signing ceremony in Abuja, TotalEnergies Exploration and Production Nigeria Managing Director, Mathieu Bouyer, described the decision as the culmination of a development process that had stretched across several decades.
He said the project reflected increased confidence in Nigeria’s investment environment and highlighted reforms targeting the non-associated gas sector as part of the factors that helped make the development commercially viable.
President Bola Tinubu welcomed the investment, saying the project demonstrated the potential of reforms introduced to reduce the cost and time required to develop oil and gas projects.
The President said the government had introduced incentives aimed specifically at unlocking onshore and shallow-water gas projects that had remained undeveloped for years.
He said the Ima development would create opportunities for Nigerian businesses, engineers, technicians and contractors, while generating jobs, economic activity in host communities and additional export earnings.
The project is also expected to have a strong Nigerian content component. TotalEnergies said all key contractors for the development would be Nigerian companies, while about 60 per cent of the workforce during the development phase is expected to come from host communities.
The development will incorporate measures aimed at reducing emissions. TotalEnergies said the platform would receive electricity from shore, operate without routine flaring and use permanent methane detection and monitoring systems.
The Federal Government said the project is part of efforts to turn Nigeria’s large natural gas reserves into productive assets capable of supporting industrialisation, energy supply, jobs and export earnings.
Special Adviser to the President on Energy, Olu Verheijen, said the Ima development illustrated the importance of creating commercial and investment conditions that allow previously stranded resources to be developed.
The government also noted that Nigerian financial institutions arranged 77 per cent of the project’s financing, further highlighting the participation of domestic financial institutions in the development.
For Nigeria LNG, the project comes as the company continues work on the Train 7 expansion, which is designed to increase the Bonny Island plant’s liquefaction capacity and strengthen the country’s position in the global LNG market.
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