Shareholders of UAC of Nigeria (UACN) Plc yesterday at the annual general meeting of the conglomerate in Lagos approved the distribution of N3.3 billion as cash dividends for the 2014 business year. Shareholders would receive a dividend per share of N1.75.
Shareholders who spoke at the meeting commended the performance of the conglomerate, in spite of the harsh operating environment.
Addressing the shareholders, chairman, UAC of Nigeria (UACN) Plc, Senator Udoma Udo Udoma, said the company has been able to sustain its previous dividend payout in spite of the tough business environment.
Key extracts of the audited report and accounts of UACN for the year ended December 31, 2014 showed that the conglomerate recorded a modest top-line growth of nine per cent from N78.7 billion in 2013 to N85.7 billion in 2014 while profit before taxation was N14.1 billion compared to N13.9 billion of 2013.
Udoma said the company has continued to manage market dynamics and innovatively lead competition in its markets, highlighting various areas where the company had recorded some key gains.
According to him, in 2014, in line with the company’s vision to be number one in its chosen markets, UACN Group achieved market leadership with its Vital Fish feed brand, which was introduced just three years ago.
He outlined that in order to further consolidate on its technology improvement initiative, capacity and efficiency in operations, three new plants were commissioned including a new Feed mill at the Ikeja plant of Livestock Feeds Plc, an automated Pie line for the Restaurants business and a new processing and packaging technology for Supreme Ice cream.
Udoma noted that as part of the business transformation process, the company has fully implemented both the new SAP enterprise resource software across the group and the Enterprise Risk Management framework to enhance the control environment of its business.
He pointed out that the group has already started seeing value from the outsourcing of its internal audit function and whistle blowing mechanism, key initiatives that have strengthened corporate governance at all levels of the business and in the group’s joint-venture operations.
The Federal Government has entered into a partnership with Sterling Bank Plc and a project contractor, Continental Transfert Technique for the collection and payment accounting for a project called ‘e-PASS. The project will start tomorrow.
The e-PASS project is a scheme designed by the Federal Government to ensure that all Non-ECOWAS immigrants that visit Nigeria with a Tourist or Business Visa and intend to stay beyond an aggregate of 56 days in a year are made to pay a certain amount of money as advised by the Nigerian Immigration Service (NIS).
With this agreement, Sterling Bank in a statement said the fee can now be paid from the date of commencement of the scheme at the bank’s designated airport stations or branches. Already, the bank has designated its representatives to be stationed at the five international airports located in Lagos, Abuja, Port Harcourt, Kano and Enugu for this purpose.
The branches that will be involved in the e-PASS scheme in Lagos include the Airport Road, Ilupeju, Adeola Odeku, Allen Avenue and head office branch along Marina, Lagos while branches at Sterling Boulevard, CBD, Mamman Kotangora Close, Area 3, Garki and Adetokunbo Ademola, Wuse will take part in Abuja. Others include Okpara Avenue, Enugu, Trans Amadi 1 in Port Harcourt, and Murtala Mohammed way in Kano.
In a statement signed by its Group Head, Strategy & Communications, Mr. Shina Atilola, the bank explained that an aggregate stay beyond 56 days but not exceeding 90 days would attract a fee in the equivalent of $200 while 91 days to 180 days will attract a fee equivalent to $1,000.
Aggregate stay beyond 180 days but not exceeding 365 days would attract a fee equivalent to USD2,000 while an over-stay without due permission from the Federal Government would attract a penalty which is 100 per cent of the prescribed fees. A fee of N8,000 will be charged for each application form, the bank said.
There is urgent need for government to give priority to the agricultural sector and save over N630 billion spent in importing agricultural produce, Central Bank of Nigeria (CBN) Governor, Godwin Emefiele has said.
The CBN chief who disclosed this at a workshop on innovative agricultural insurance products, in Lagos at the weekend, said the agricultural sector provides up to 70 per cent of employment in Nigeria and accounts for about 42 per cent of the country’s Gross Domestic Product (GDP).
Emefiele, who was represented by the Acting Managing Director of Nigeria Incentive Based Risk Sharing System for Agricultural Lending (NIRSAL), Edwin Nzelu, said the large import food products include wheat, rice, flour, fish, tomato paste, textile and sugar.
“We are confronted, as a nation with a wide range of development challenges especially with the dwindling global crude oil prices and the nation’s dependence on it as its major source of revenue. There is the need to diversify the mono-cultural tendencies of the economy by developing other sectors of the economy especially agriculture,” he said.
H added that Nigeria’s formal financial system is lending about four per cent of all formal credit to the agricultural sector compared to three years ago when only about one per cent of all credit went to agriculture. He insisted that lending is still low given the lingering perception by banks that agriculture is highly risky.
Emefiele said development and expansion of the agricultural insurance sub-sector will go a long way in mitigating against natural disasters and eventually encourage banks to lend to agriculture.
“Agricultural insurance has been proven to be instrumental in transferring risks and stabilising farmers’ income, but in Nigeria, agricultural insurance is one of the less developed line of business. Therefore, there is need for insurance companies in collaboration with relevant stakeholders to develop innovative products that will carter for the needs of farmers in their provision of agricultural insurance,” he said.
He explained that over the years, only the Nigeria Agricultural Insurance Corporation (NAIC) was licensed to underwrite agriculture insurance in the country, until two years ago when NAICOM liberalised the insurance subsector for conventional insurers to underwrite.
“I urge private insurance companies to take advantage of this opportunity and consider extending insurance cover to the agricultural sector to create a competitive market which will eventually increase insurance penetration to rural areas,” he said.
Emefiele said expansion of agricultural insurance products has become imperative especially now that climatic reports have it that Nigerian farmers are prone to risks from natural disaster such as flood, draught as well as different crop and livestock diseases.
He said that NIRSAL was established to tackle both the financial and commodity agricultural value chains and that its insurance pillar was created to facilitate the expansion of the agricultural insurance products for lending by encouraging the introduction of new products such as weather index insurance, yield index insurance, multi-peril among others.
He said the workshop was organised in collaboration with Alliance for Green Revolution in Africa (AGRA) which has garnered experience over time in introducing various insurance products in some African countries and was one of the major stakeholders in designing NIRSAL.
Fidelity Bank has announced the commencement of Saturday banking services in select branch locations across the country.
This initiative which is in line with the bank’s mission to make financial services easy and accessible is part of the bank’s renewed effort to provide a new face of service in the industry.
In a statement from the bank, effective September 12, Saturday banking services began between 10.00am to 2.00pm in 15 select Fidelity Bank branches across the country.
The branches include Ketu, Alaba, Computer Village, Gbagada, Egbeda, (Lagos); Ekpoma, Mission Road (Edo State); Aba 3, Umuahia (Abia) and Challenge, Ibadan. Others are Polo Park, (Enugu), Nnewi, Onitsha Main (Anambra); Kano 3 and Owerri Main.
Managing Director/Chief Executive Officer, Fidelity Bank Plc. Nnamdi Okonkwo said that the introduction of Saturday banking services further reaffirms the bank’s commitment towards the creation of new customer experience in service delivery. “We are actively changing the way we do business; becoming more focused on our customers’ needs and exceeding their expectations from us.”
He noted the changing business environment and insisted that the only way to remain relevant to customers is to be in tune with the times.
In terms of value proposition to customers, Okonkwo said Saturday banking will allow customers to send and receive money to and from over 200 countries of the world.
The Bank’s electronic banking platform will undoubtedly bear the weight of this new strategic direction as branch locations offering Saturday Banking service will automatically become dedicated centres for money transfer and online remittances.
Okonkwo said the Bank is leveraging technology to improve customer service experience. He explained that the bank’s improved electronic banking system has drastically reduced the turn-around-time for online customer set up at all touch points, a clear testament of the Bank’s resolve to continually surpass customer expectation. According to him, customers can conduct bank-to-bank transfers seamlessly via Fidelity mobile platforms.
He said that the bank is in the process of migrating its core banking platform from Finacle version 7 to Finacle version 10. The migration, which is part of the banks transformation initiative, will enhance its operational efficiency, strengthen innovation capabilities and support scalable growth. “Finacle version 10 will enable us to implement services such as enhanced SME banking, management information system reporting, application monitoring and disaster recovery automation.
The Central Bank of Nigeria (CBN) Governor Godwin Emefiele yesterday ruled out a naira devaluation, assuring investors not to panic concerning the Treasury Single Account (TSA).
Emefiele said he was ready to inject liquidity if needed into the interbank market, which dried up this week following the directive to government departments to move their funds from commercial banks into a TSA at the apex bank.
The policy is part of new President Muhammadu Buhari’s drive to fight corruption, but analysts say it could suck up as much as 10 percent of banking sector deposits.
With global oil prices tumbling, banks and companies are already struggling with the consequences of a dive in Nigeria’s energy revenues that has hit the naira currency and triggered flows of capital out of the country.
Then JP Morgan kicked Nigeria out of its influential Emerging Markets Bond Index last week due to restrictions that the central bank imposed on the currency market to support the naira and preserve its foreign exchange reserves.
Since taking office in May, Buhari has vowed to rein in Nigeria’s dependency on oil exports which account for 90 percent of foreign currency earnings. However, he has faced criticism from investors for failing to appoint a cabinet yet or outline concrete policies.
Amid confusion over the implementation of the single account policy, overnight interbank lending rates spiked to 200 percent, but Emefiele denied the policy had provoked a liquidity crisis.
“There is no shortage of liquidity,” he told Reuters, pointing to an oversubscribed sale of treasury bills on Wednesday. “A spike is a momentary action. It’s sentiment.”
“I do not think there is any need for anybody to panic,” he added. Nevertheless, the interbank naira market was paralyzed for a third day on Thursday, with banks unwilling to lend to each other, even when rates fell back to 20-30 percent.
In a sign of the financial ructions, commercial bank cash balances with the central bank that are normally earmarked for foreign exchange or bond purchases plunged to N173 billion yesterday from N486 billion two days ago.
Emefiele said the TSA amount would be less than N1 trillion, although he did not give details beyond saying the measure was designed to root out graft.
His comments did not instill confidence in the new rules among economists. “It’s an example of the government deciding on a policy without thinking through the mechanics of how its implementation will work,” said Alan Cameron at Exotix, a London-based specialist in frontier markets – a higher risk subset of emerging economies.
Emefiele ruled out a further devaluation of the naira following two in the past year due to the collapse in oil revenues, insisting that its current level of 197 to the dollar would be held. “There will not be a devaluation because right now the currency is appropriately priced,” he said.
In a series of unconventional interventions to protect the naira, the bank has blocked access to foreign currency for the importation of 41 items ranging from soap and toothpicks to cement and private jets. “There is no intention to review any of those items on the 41 list because we believe that they are items that can be produced within the country,” he said, adding that the list might grow.
The Central Bank of Nigeria (CBN) has come under attack for attempting to prop up the naira by restricting access to dollars. Two members of the Monetary Policy Committee criticized the policy; others said CBN should allow a more flexible exchange rate.
Bloomberg quoted Chibuike Uche as questioning the legality of the CBN’s June decision to stop importers of about 40 items, including rice, furniture and toothpicks, accessing official foreign exchange markets.
Doyin Salami said the measure would slow economic growth and that foreign investors were confused by the central bank’s attempts to defend the naira since March.
Investors are “baffled by the CBN’s expressed unwillingness to countenance any further currency adjustments and market liberalisations,”
Salami, a lecturer at Lagos Business School, said at an MPC meeting attended by all 12 members on July 23 and 24, according to a statement published on CBN’s website that: “The credibility that CBN has carefully cultivated, if not lost, is most certainly undermined,” he said.
The naira plummeted by 21 percent to a record low of $206.32 between the end of June and February 12 as the price of oil crashed.
CBN Governor Godwin Emefiele introduced bans on purchases of dollars to stem the rout. The currency has since been mostly flat in the interbank market, averaging 198.94 since the end of February.
But there are many stakeholders who insist that the CBN’s forex restrictions are in order.
Former Executive Director, Keystone Bank, Richard Obire, said the policy is expected to encourage importers to look inwards and begin local production as the prices of the affected items would shoot up in the market because of high cost of buying forex from the black market.
He said in the long run, the benefits of the CBN’s decision, will outweigh whatever temporary pains it may have. “Those who decided to produce those goods locally and export them,will earn foreign exchange instead of depleting the reserves. In the short-to-medium terms, it will be painful but subsequently, it will improve the overall economy,” he said.
He said even the International Monetary Fund (IMF) believes that the CBN should protect the reserves because of the huge benefits of such decisions on the naira.
“If the CBN keeps funding these items, the demand for the dollar will rise and this will affect its push for infrastructural development needed to boost the real sector,” he said.
He said the policy could be used to achieve developmental objective, adding that using the available capacity to produce locally, would reduce forex demand and when the local production is enhanced, more people will find jobs within the economy.
Former President, Chartered Institute of Bankers of Nigeria (CIBN), Mazi Okechukwu Unegbu said the policy was meant to fix the battered foreign reserves. He, however, insisted that the some items in the list, have no business being there because they are raw materials.
“I have nothing against the policy, but the CBN must be cautious not to drive manufacturers to the parallel market. I expect the regulator to be one step ahead of the stakeholders,” he said.
“The CBN should always consider the unintended consequences of its actions and must set a band which the naira must not exceed”.
Unegbu said it is not right to formulate policies simply to attract foreign investors, because if the investment climate is conducive, they will come without being persuaded.
DETERMINING the integrity of transfers is the cause of delays in crediting beneficiary accounts in online cash transfers, the Central Bank of Nigeria (CBN) has said.
Most online transactions allow 20 minutes or more between transaction approval and the time the beneficiary’s account is credited.
CBN Director, Banking and Payments System Department, ‘Dipo Fatokun, at a briefing in Lagos, said the time control was introduced to enable the account holder get an alert before the beneficiary.
He said the regulator was taking steps to reduce fraud in e-payment transactions.
The Payments System Vision 2020, launched in 2013, he said, was meant to achieve the re-organisation of the National Payments Governance Structure and encourage more people to embrace e-payment transactions.
Fatokun, represented by the CBN Deputy Director, Banking and Payments System Department, Musa Jimoh, said the project identified agriculture, smart cities, health, transportation, hotels, entertainment, government flow, education and Consumer Bill Payment as well as direct debits as focus areas.
However, Fatokun explained that the absence of a unique identifier in the industry has negative consequences on the growth of e-payments and that the need to resolve the challenge that prompted the CBN, in collaboration with the Bankers’Committee to launch the Bank Verification Number (BVN) project. The project, he said, would help build confidence of customers on the e-payment channels and enhance integrity of transactions.
“The BVN initiative is aimed at protecting bank customers and further strengthening the Nigerian banking system by uniquely identifying all bank customers and acts as a stop-gap, prior to the full implementation of the National Identity Card system,” he said.
Also, the CBN mandated all banks, switches and processors to comply with Payment Card Industry Data Security Standards (PCIDSS) and, subsequently, conducted an oversight on compliance which showed that most banks had been certified.
He said the certification lasted for one year and that banks were at various levels of re-certification. He explained that PCIDSS is a global compliance standard for any entity that stores, transmits or processes card payment data.
CBN, Fatokun said, also directed banks to set up systems that will enable the automatic refund of Automated Teller Machine (ATM) dispense errors to customers. The regulator has also issued guidelines for card issuance and usage meant to provide minimum standards and requirements for the issuance and usage of payment cards in the country.
“Its implementation enables issuing banks, other financial institution, processors and cards schemes upgrade and maintain their card operations to ensure optimum security, efficiency, cost effectiveness and customer friendliness,” he said.
The platform, he added, also serves as a tool for banks and other financial institutions to assess their card issuance portfolio and ensures that consumers that carry Nigerian -issued cards operate within acceptable standards.
“From a regulatory perspective; the CBN acknowledges that less than optimal, inefficient or poorly designed systems will ultimately have a negative impact on systemic stability, economic development and growth. It has therefore consciously pursued the growth of a payments system that is safe, efficient, cost effective and reliable,” he said.
He said payment systems have moved from the backroom to the boardroom of organisations given its strategic importance in today’s globalised world.
He said a well-functioning payment system plays significant role in supporting the economy.
He explained that such significance prompted the apex bank to promote a payment system where the underserved and non-served are integrated into formal financial services sector.
WorldRemit announces the appointment of Gabriella Poczo as Chief Technology Officer (CTO) to revolutionalise its mobile money services.
One of Silicon Valley’s most respected engineering leads, she oversaw Skype’s move from desktop to mobile.
She also served as CTO at messaging service textPlus, Senior Director of Handset Software Development at T-Mobile, USA and as Engineering Director and CTO for Sun Microsystems’ OEM Platforms Group.
Poczo’s appointment underlines WorldRemit’s status as the leading player in mobile money transfers – with a mobile-first strategy for senders and the world’s largest selection of Mobile Money wallets for recipients.
“This company is so far ahead of the game in terms of mobile money transfers. While others are still talking about the opportunity, WorldRemit is sending hundreds of thousands transactions to mobile devices across Africa and Asia,” said Poczo. “They know this space better than anyone. Now it’s time to take our service to the next level – integrating more Mobile Money partners, and providing enhanced apps for our senders.”
Her key role in taking Skype mobile is especially relevant given the frequent comparisons between the two services. “There are a handful of companies that are seen as providing essential services to migrants – Skype is one. There’s also messaging services like WhatsApp and Viber and now WorldRemit,” she added.
WorldRemit founder and CEO Ismail Ahmed welcomed Poczo’s appointment saying: “Everyone talks about building mobile services, but Gabriella is one of the few people who actually has experience of creating a mobile communications service for a global user-base.
“Getting this right isn’t just about creating a slick app for senders. Mobile Money is driving financial inclusion in the developing world and our position as the leading sender of money to these services is transforming lives.”
For the over 4,000 prospective entrepreneurs and career seekers, who attended the Sterling Bank’s Get Ready for Work initiative, in Lagos, the chances of either starting new businesses or securing choice jobs look promising. The event was an opportunity for the lender to deepen its retail banking segment among youths, support those seeking capital and knowledge and those who want to start new businesses, reports COLLINS NWEZE.
Entrepreneurship is the soul of every thriving economy and so is a productive workforce.
Sterling Bank’s Get Ready for Work initiative held in Lagos at the weekend broadened the opportunity for young entrepreneurs and job seekers to achieve their life ambitions.
The event, with the theme “Mind The Gap” was organised to help participants understand what they need to make it in life, whether in businesses or paid employment.
The event, part of the bank’s Corporate Social Responsibility initiatives, was supported by online job portal, Jobberman and skills development centre, Field of Skills and Dream. It empowered over 4,000 graduates with employable and entrepreneurship skills.
The event presented a platform for the bank to bridge the financial exclusion gap as its staff also encouraged participants to open accounts with the bank and enjoy the benefits. For instance, as fallout of last year’s programme, the bank gave grants to those who have started their businesses. Four beneficiaries got N2.5 million, N1.5 million, N1 million and N500,000. The gesture is expected to be repeated this year.
The bank has consistently reaffirmed its commitment to promoting retail banking which allows it to provide banking services to individual consumers. Such services include savings and transactional accounts, mortgages, personal loans, debit cards, and credit cards, among others.
This year’s events also witnessed a psychoanalysis session where the participants had their personalities analysed by an expert to determine what career path would be most suitable for them. It also featured speeches from successful career people on how to tread successfully on whatever career path one may choose.
Chief Executive Officer, Wakanow, Obinna Okezie, urged the participants to be hard working. He said: “We started with nothing, but today, we employ over 500 people in our five years of operation. That is why it is important for you all to pursue your ideas and turn them to reality.’’
Executive Director, Field of Skills and Dreams VTE Academy (FSD) Omowale Ogunrinde, commended Sterling Bank for investing in the future of youths in country through the initiative.
According to her, the bank was responsible for organisations like hers agreeing to take part in the programme without charging participants professional fees. She said her firm is doing everything possible to get more Nigerians prepared to become better entrepreneurs. He said the FSD has in recent years, equipped the youths with entrepreneurial skills that enabled them to start their own businesses. “We are helping to build enduring entrepreneurs. This can only be achieved through training and commitment from organisations as Sterling Bank is doing,” she said.
Sterling Bank’s Executive Director, Finance & Strategy, Abubakar Suleiman, said apart from getting the youth ready to pursue their career choices and helping them acquire the required skills, the lender will also through the programme, reduce the unemployment rate in the country.
Suleiman, who spoke at the pre-event briefing held in Lagos, said: ‘Get Ready For Work’, now in its third year, is the bank’s way of giving back to the society and equipping the youths with the right skills to succeed in their jobs.
He also said the lender is considering extending its “Get Ready For Work”initiative to more states of the Federation and encouraged other banks to join in the project.
He said the lender was committed to helping to reduce the high level of youth unemployment in the country, pointing out that there would be serious consequences for the society if the problem is not addressed.
According to him: “There is no country in the world that would not be affected by a high level of youth unemployment. Once youth employment stands above 25 per cent in any country, such country is heading for chaos.”
He noted that the problem of youth unemployment in the country had been made worse by the fact that what students are taught in schools these days often leaves them ill-equipped to handle simple tasks when they eventually secure employment.
Speaking to reporters during the training, Sterling Bank’s Head of Strategy and Communications, Shina Atilola, said the initiative was part of the bank’s efforts at addressing the paucity of skills in the labour market.
He said: “We discovered that when you analyse the Nigerian labour market there is disconnect between the demand and supply. Most of the jobs that are available, most people are not qualified for them. But this is because our institutions are not prepared to take them into the employment system. We also initiated this programme because we realised that some people are qualified but are not employable. This is because, there is no institutional structure to train them and prepare them for a work environment.
“These are the reasons Sterling Bank started this ‘Get ready for work’ initiative. We have brought successful entrepreneurs to come mentor these young people. Beyond that, some people that are just willing to work in career employment, we have also brought in people that have made impact and are successful in their careers to come and teach them how they succeeded in it. We also have brought in human resources agencies to teach them how to best market themselves.”
He also said this seminar had over 3,000 people registered, saying that over 4,000 were present. This, according to him was a clear indication that there are a lot of willing applicants with no jobs. Also he added that some applicants would be divided into master classes with seasoned Entrepreneurs, high flying career individuals.
Life coach/psychoanalyst, Jerome Onipede engaged entrepreneurs in a master class on what it takes to develop a business and make it in the cut-throat environment like Nigeria. Another class was also organised for career focused individuals to learn how to become employees of value in any organisation of their choice. The event gave participants the opportunity to interact with human resource representatives of various organisations and undergo on-the-spot testing with a view of securing jobs.
Olise-Emeka Nwachukwu
Olise-Emeka Nwachukwu, Consultant at Human Capacity Development Consultants, said Sterling Bank is trying to bridge the gap between competencies in terms of employment and entrepreneurship in the market.
“We have a large number of young people who leave school, and need to take step one to become skilled, in terms of ready to work environment.
They also need to know how to set up their business. People do not have the right attitude to work, they do not have the right skills to take the available jobs. The schools only give them theory about the knowledge of the job.
It is about people understanding the competencies that are required to be good performers. “What Sterling Bank has done is to bring these young people together and get experts in different fields to talk to them. And they also give them the opportunity to drop their resume with human resources firms that are here,” he said.
He said his firm helps orgnaisations to develop their staff to optimum levels. “All the collected resumes will be uploaded to our database, and we will match them with employers. Getting a job is a prerogative of the staff. There are few experienced people also, and we are looking at ways to support them. I am looking at theirs skills and experiences, which help us profile the candidates and match them with available roles,” he said.
Nwachukwu said the company also looks at candidates achievements over time, because that could explain that if you have been doing this, there will be possibility that you will do well.
Continuing, he said that it is not everyone that really needs to get a job as a good number are better off with entrepreneurship. “People have to understand that it is not just about getting a job but people can go into entrepreneurship, focusing on everyday needs of the people and they will make their money because people spend so much money on their everyday needs. Young people need to understand their skills, develop them and transform them into money making ventures rather than just looking for job,” he said.
He said the company’s Productivity Plus, looks at people’s lives and train them on how to become successful. “We set your financial goals, academic goals, careers goals and emotional goals and put a system that will help you to achieve those goals. Some of the candidates have been contacted, and will be given direction on the next phase of their lives,” he said.
A Human Resources Officer, H. Pierson, Tom Onoja, said his team had been able to interview 10 candidates, who would progress to the next phase of their career.
“We are helping people that are looking for job find the right employers. We already have 10 people we are trying to get job for in line with our goal of assisting the bank to achieve their goals. We will keep talking to all the people that are qualified, and they will all be contacted,” he said.
A participant, Godwin Nwachukwu, who graduated from the University of Nigeria, Nsukka said his expectations were met at the event. He said his details are already with the human resource mangers from the event, who he believed will contact him later on. “I am confident that I will be contacted. And besides, what I have learnt is enough to enable be start my own business,” he said.
Managing Partner, Red Media Africa, Chude Jideonwo, said: “We would share skills and knowledge that can help them as they get into the work space because there are so many young unemployed people.”
Partnership with FSD
Sterling Bank Plc has signed an agreement with Field of Skills and Dreams (FSD), a vocational training institution, to provide training programmes for members of the National Youth Service Corps (NYSC).
The pact, the bank said, is part of its Corporate Social Responsibility (CSR) drive to support skill acquisition among youths to prepare them for self-employment.
Under the agreement, the bank will sponsor the training of NYSC corps members in various vocations during the course of their service year in alignment with its expressed purpose of enriching lives. The lender has so far funded the training of about 100 NYSC members in various vocations during the pilot stage through the NYSC-SAED (Skills Acquisition and Entrepreneurship Development.
It has also equipped a 20-seat ICT laboratory of the FSD which will provide all participants with rotational access to free ICT training.
Sterling Bank in a statement explained that the need to support the development of skills among the youth has become inevitable given the growing rate of unemployment in the country. “We believe that the steps we have taken so far would help in ameliorating the problem of unemployment in the country and support other initiatives such as the Youth Empowerment Scheme (YES) and the Youth Enterprise with Innovation in Nigeria (YOU-WIN) introduced by the government to checkmate the relatively high rate of unemployment in the country.”
Social lender scheme
In its determination to keep supporting the youthful population, Sterling Bank has repackaged the Social Lender Scheme by increasing the minimum on-line micro credit from N3,000 to N10,000.
The scheme was launched last year and the bank has disbursed over N6 million to over 2000 on-line customers. To date, over 90 per cent of the loans have been paid back by the beneficiaries.
Social Lender; the first in Nigeria is a modified peer to peer lending solution using the Social Media Platforms through which micro-credit is offered to members of these communities. The scheme provides a platform for online fans and followers who are customers of Sterling Bank to obtain these monies via social media channels such as Facebook and Twitter.
The bank in a statement explained that the scheme was repackaged with added benefits because of its success story for the bank, the quality of feedback from members of the on-line community and the impressive pay back attitude of the beneficiaries.
depositors who fail to meet the October 31 deadline for Bank Verification Number (BVN) registration will be barred from enjoying banking services until they comply, The Nation has learnt.
No fewer than 20 million customers have so far been registered, according to the Nigeria Inter Bank Settlement System Plc (NIBSS).
In its quest to ensure the success of the exercise, NIBSS partnered with telecoms firms to create a platform through which bank customers can confirm their registration status.
Already, NIBSS is partnering telecoms service provider, Etisalat, to roll out the BVN Query Service.
The service, which was unveiled at the NIBSS headquarters recently, is designed to help the public get information on their BVN via their mobile phones.
The initiative is coming on the heels of the extended deadline for the BVN registration which ends next month.
The registration was a directive from the Central Bank of Nigeria (CBN) to all Deposit Money Banks (commercial banks) to register their customers biometrically in furtherance of the Know Your Customer (KYC) policy.
NIBSS Managing Director,Ade Shonubi, said the initiative was in response to growing public demand for confirmation of BVN status by those, who have enrolled on the platform. He added that the BVN Query Service would boost such efforts like KYC for banks.
Also, Chief Marketing Officer, Etisalat Nigeria, Francesco Angelone, said the partnership with NIBSS on USSD BVN Notification Service was in line with the telco’s commitment to continue to create value for the consumers across all sectors, including the banking and telecoms industries.
“We are happy to be the first to offer this product among the operators because we believe that innovation is the way the telecoms industry must lead,” Angelone said.
“The integration with the banking industry is a pillar for development. Etisalat subscribers can check their BVN registration status and number by dialing a dedicated code for an instant response at a cost of N10 per Query,” he said.
The Query Service is based on instant request- instant response and aims at providing utility for those who have enrolled on the BVN platform of the CBN.
