Mary Olushoga

Mary is an award-winning community and economic development professional focused on using her expertise to support African women and youth entrepreneurs. Olushoga recently launched the AWP Network Vendor Program with the mission to increase the number of women vendors who can supply to large retailers in Africa. She has established partnerships with retailers like ShopRite Nigeria, Jara Stores, Miniso Nigeria, Next Cash n Carry, Prince Ebeano and FreshFort. Olushoga founded the African Women Power (AWP) Network – awpnetwork.com in 2012 to power small business success for African entrepreneurs. She is a multi-talented networker, mentor, speaker, writer, small business advocate and change agent.

Olushoga holds a bachelor’s degree from Union College in Schenectady, New York, a Master of Science Degree from Baruch College and has served as a public policy fellow at the University at Albany, Center for Women in Government and Civil Society.

Olushoga is winner of the African Women Innovation & Entrepreneurship Forum Empowerment award, the African Youth Excellence Award for her leadership in business and public service, a Vital Voices Global Leadership Fellow, the Union College Alumni Award for her service and dedication to her alma mater, an IndiAfrica Young Visionary Fellow, a Women4Africa International Media Woman of the Year, a Crans Montana New Leader, the first-ever GOOD Maker/Oxfam America International Women’s Day Challenge Winner, a Nigeria Leadership Initiative (NLI) Associate, an Oxfam America Sisters on the Planet Ambassador and participated in the Sub-Saharan African Women In Public Service Fall Institute.

The AWP Network shares the startup stories of African entrepreneurs, organizes events, webinars and clinics, and creates opportunities for network members to connect with business experts in the marketing, tech and HR fields. The AWP Network also offers agribusiness training for women farmers through a strategic partnership with the Planet Earth Institute and launched the DREAM Initiative with Covenant University, a program created to help secondary school students in Lagos to develop business plans. Both programs support the economic development and sustainability of African women and girls.

Mary Olushoga has served as Assistant Vice President and Senior Business Advisor at Pursuit Lending in New York, where she managed the J.P Morgan Chase Entrepreneur of Color fund. In that role, she oversaw and developed an overall strategy to penetrate and spur economic development within the Bronx small business market and ecosystem. Olushoga accomplished this goal by establishing partnerships with numerous corporations, local banks and community development organizations. Prior to serving as AVP, Olushoga has also served as Senior Business Advisor at Columbia University’s School of Business where she managed the Small Business entrepreneurship program, on behalf of Columbia University’s $80 million commitment to social responsibility. In her capacity as Business Advisor, Olushoga oversaw and managed the Harlem Local Vendor Program (HLVP) and the Columbia University Community Business Program (CCBP), both programs focused on empowering entrepreneurs and worked to strengthen ecosystems that enabled the growth and sustainability of small businesses in Harlem.

Olushoga has also worked as a Global Business Development Specialist at the United States Department of Commerce Minority Business Development Agency, Olushoga has spent a number of years empowering entrepreneurs and working on business education projects through various initiatives to include the AWP Network Agropreneur Project, and the AWP Network Dream Initiative to name a few. She presented her work on women entrepreneurs at the UK House of Lords, Harvard University, Duke University, Yale University, Union College, the Columbia University Africa Economic Forum, Georgetown University School of Foreign Service, the United States Department of Labor Strategy Meeting on Inclusion, Entrepreneurship, and Disability, W!se Institute, the United Nations Commission on the Status of Women, the United Nations ECOSOC Youth Employment Forum, and the Rockefeller Foundation Tech Salon and has featured on BBC World News, Black Enterprise, iwantherjob.com, sheinspiresher.com, YNaija, AFK Insider, Applause Africa, BusinessDay Nigeria, and The Guardian Nigeria. In addition to this, Olushoga writes for GE Ideas Lab, SciDev.net, The Guardian Nigeria and the Huffington Post.

The AWP Network is proudly recognized as one of the leading organizations supporting African Women in Technology.