At the 2025 HerStory International Awards, women from across sectors were celebrated for their leadership, resilience, and impact — as organisers called for greater investment in documenting the stories of African women often left out of mainstream history.
Sixteen women were honoured in Abuja on Wednesday at the event dedicated to amplifying the stories of women who have led, inspired, and persevered across different sectors of society.
Delivering her keynote address, UN Women Country Representative to Nigeria and ECOWAS, Beatrice Eyong, called for collective action to ensure that women’s contributions are not sidelined in historical and developmental narratives.
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Ms Eyong, who was represented by the Deputy Representative UN, Patience Ekeoba, noted that the stories of women must be intentionally told and amplified.
She said gender equality is not a favour – it is a right.
“We are proud to support platforms that amplify the leadership and contributions of women. When we tell the stories of women, we are doing more than archiving history,” she said.
“We are disrupting silence and placing women where they rightfully belong-at the centre of national and global development.”
She further highlighted that UN Women’s ongoing efforts in Nigeria span across political participation, economic empowerment, peacebuilding, protection from violence, and humanitarian support – areas where the stories of many awardees intersect.
Recognising Women of Impact
This year’s honourees cut across entertainment, academia, health, human rights, business, public service, and grassroots organising.
They include: Rahama Sadau, actress and filmmaker and founder of Ray of Hope Foundation; Mimi White-Femi, skincare entrepreneur; Ruth Mshelia, former National Project Coordinator, Nigeria for Women Project; Adenike Oladosu, Founder, I Lead Climate Action Initiative; Suruurah Ogunfemi, founder of Guided Beginnings; Gloria Anetor, Professor of public health at NOUN; and Asmau Aliyu, an entrepreneur, honoured for family resilience during conflict.
Others are Monalisa Chinda, youth empowerment leader; Beatrice Eyong, UN Women Representative and gender equality advocate; Adaeze Oreh, Commissioner for Health, Rivers State; Happiness Chibueze, tech entrepreneur; Vanessa Phala, Country and Regional Director, International Labour Organisation; Oluwafunke Amobi, Deputy Head of Operations, Stanbic IBTC Bank; Oluwashola Okpodu and Antonia Yakubu.
The honourees’ stories are now featured on the HerStory International platform – a digital repository that ensures open access to biographies of African women globally.
Investing in women’s stories
In a presentation unveiling the HerStory International platform, Nigeria’s Ambassador to Kenya, Chijioke Wigwe, emphasised the urgent need for women to invest in telling and preserving their own stories.
Mr Wigwe, the guest of honour, added that too often, women’s stories are lost or overlooked simply because they are not written, published, or widely distributed.
“If women’s stories are not mainstreamed, women will remain on the margins. Our children will grow up not knowing their mothers, sisters, and aunties as heroes — because their stories have not been told.”
The HerStory platform, originally launched as a series of biographical volumes, was announced to have now evolved into an open-access digital archive.
According to the CEO of May Publishing Limited, Udu Yakubu, each woman’s story is now available globally as an individually published digital book, complete with a unique identifier – referred to as the International Standard of Women – allowing for visibility and global recognition.
Mr Yakubu noted that the platform ensures free and unlimited access to the life stories of African women, from prominent professionals to unsung community leaders.
A call to action
Mr Yakubu emphasised that while support is welcomed, long-term impact depends on women’s willingness to fund and share their stories.
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Attendees were encouraged to make personal commitments – not only to celebrate the honourees of the night, but to ensure that the stories of ordinary and extraordinary women alike are documented and passed onto future generations.
“Let us support women, not only in moments of achievement, but in the long journey that leads there. Let us challenge the systems that still make it difficult for women to rise, and build coalitions that make it easier for girls to dream,” Mr Yakubu said.
He also announced that the project’s next phase will expand to include more women across Africa, with current profiles already featuring names from Ghana, Senegal, and Botswana.
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