| Participant | Martha Adamu |
| Location | Durumi, FCT Abuja |
| Business | Sale of grains, foodstuff, kunu and snacks |
| Disability | Blind |
| Programme | Empower Her Ability |
Before participating in the Empower Her Ability Project, Adamu Martha Shokogami operated her food business from home, selling grains, foodstuff and kunu on a small scale.
Operating from home limited her visibility and access to customers, resulting in low and inconsistent sales. She also faced difficulties identifying reliable markets for sourcing products and managing the finances of the business effectively.
Martha faced several barriers to growing her business, including limited customer access, low visibility and weak financial management practices.
Income from sales was often spent without proper tracking, making it difficult for her to determine her profits or identify how much could be reinvested into the business. As a woman with visual impairment, these challenges were compounded by difficulties accessing customers and expanding her market.
Through the Empower Her Ability Project, Martha received entrepreneurship training, mentorship focused on financial record keeping and a ₦100,000 financial grant.
She identified the mentorship as particularly valuable in strengthening her understanding of financial record keeping, customer engagement and communication. The support also helped build her confidence in managing her business more independently.
Martha has transitioned from home-based selling to operating from a designated market space. This has increased the visibility of her business and expanded her access to customers.
She reports improved income compared with the period before the programme, as well as greater confidence in engaging customers and managing her business independently.
The training and mentorship also helped her develop stronger financial discipline and improve how she interacts with customers, giving her a more structured approach to running the business.
Martha continues to face challenges with preserving perishable products, particularly kunu, due to limited electricity and storage facilities. She also experiences occasional stigma from customers because of her disability.
Improved storage facilities and reliable access to electricity would help her reduce losses and manage her products more effectively as the business grows.
| Key change: Martha transitioned from low-visibility, home-based trading to a more visible market-based business with improved customer access and income. Through entrepreneurship training, mentorship and financial support, she has also strengthened her financial discipline, customer engagement and confidence in managing her business. |
