Toun Okewale Sonaiya is amplifying women’s voices through radio, advocacy, and training to drive gender equity in Nigeria.
Toun Okewale Sonaiya is an influential figure in Nigerian media known for founding Women Radio WFM 91.7 – the first radio station in Nigeria and sub-Saharan Africa dedicated solely to women and their families. Launched on December 18, 2015, the station was born from her frustration with how underrepresented women were in traditional media.
A 2010 study revealed that only 17.5% of radio programming targeted women, and most of that was either stereotypical or superficial. In response, she and two directors decided to create a women-centric platform that would take women’s issues seriously. To fund the project, Sonaiya even remortgaged her home in London, highlighting her investment in this vision.
Her journey to founding Nigeria’s first women’s radio station
Sonaiya’s broadcasting journey started remarkably early. At age seven, she began presenting at the Ogun State Broadcasting Corporation, inspired by her father, who was also a broadcaster. She spent over 19 years at OGBC, later holding key leadership roles including Director of Marketing and Sales at AIT, Director of Programmes at DAAR Communications, and Executive Director at St. Ives Communications.
In the UK, she made history as the first African female presenter and producer at Choice FM London, now known as Capital XTRA. She also became the first African female voice on the BBC’s “One for All” educational campaign. Outside the media, she worked as a Senior Housing Officer at Housing for Women in the UK, supporting ex-offenders and trafficked women.
WFM 91.7 in detail
WFM 91.7 is Nigeria’s first female-oriented and gender-sensitive radio station and the first of its kind in sub-Saharan Africa, dedicated to women and their families. Co-owned by Dr. Babatunde Okewale and Toun Okewale Sonaiya, the station is operated by St. Ives Communications and is headquartered in Arepo, Ogun State, Nigeria.
WFM 91.7’s mission is to inspire, inform, and empower women by providing programming focused on women’s development, gender equality, family issues, sports, business, politics, governance, health, and youth affairs, from a female perspective. Its programming ethos challenges stereotypical media portrayals of women by emphasising women’s agency and leadership.
Beyond daily broadcasts, the station runs several impact-driven initiatives. One is TheWomenAgenda, which promotes women and girls as anti-corruption agents through grassroots accountability clubs, currently active in Lagos and Ogun states with plans to expand nationally. Another is the Women in Radio Development (WINRAD) network, which supports female media professionals. There is also the Women Radio Centre, Nigeria’s first women-focused media academy, training female journalists, especially in investigative reporting on governance and corruption.
Sonaiya is also the founder of the annual Voice of Women Conference and Awards (VOW), which recognises Nigerian women driving change in leadership, policy, and social development. The station trains around 200 disadvantaged women and girls annually in entrepreneurship and business skills through programs like EquipHer. It also collaborates with civil society and state actors to host programs that amplify female voices in politics, governance, and economic empowerment.
Toun Okewale Sonaiya was inducted into the Nigerian Women Hall of Fame as the first woman to establish a radio station solely for women in the country.
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