The Nation Newspaper

Tag: NDIC

  • NDIC: Govt committed to a stable financial system

    The Federal Government is committed to ensuring a stable financial system, the Managing Director/CEO, Nigeria Deposit Insurance Corporation (NDIC), Umaru Ibrahim, has said.

    Ibrahim spoke yesterday at a seminar organised by the corporation for management staff of the Federal Ministry of Finance in Abuja.

    He said NDIC will collaborate with the finance ministry so as to achieve optimal performance, and ensure the stability of Nigeria’s financial system.

    The NDIC chief said the seminar was apt considering the changes in the nation’s financial system, and the decisive policy actions and reforms often implemented to achieve the desired outcomes.

    Ibrahim said: “The FMF is a core pillar of Nigeria’s Financial Safety-Net as the Guarantor of the Lender-of-Last-Resort. Hence, it is necessary for the FMF to constantly engage in capacity building drive in a bid to upscale and harness the human resource potentials within the Ministry to be able to play the role of formulating and implementing fiscal policy in the economy.

    “This seminar helps in fostering collaboration and knowledge-sharing between the staff of the Federal Ministry of Finance (FMF) and its agencies, in a bid to achieve optimal performance,” he said.

    The NDIC said its mandate very unique to it, hence in his word, “ it is very important that the NDIC educates and enlightens all its stakeholders on its activities,” saying it is a step in the right direction to organize the seminar as an avenue to creating proper understanding of its activities by the staff of the FMF that are saddled with the task of supervising it.

    The Permanent Secretary, Federal Ministry of Finance, Mahmoud Isa-Dutse, who was represented by the Deputy Director of Home Finance, A.F. Ebeda, said aside the fact that the workshop is a really good opportunity for members of the FMF to update themselves on what is going on in the financial system, it is also a good platform to collaborate with NDIC to enhance capacity and share ideas.

  • FG committed to a stable financial system – NDIC

    The Federal Government is committed to ensuring a stable financial system in the country, Managing Director/Chief Executive Officer, Nigeria Deposit Insurance Corporation, (NDIC), Umaru Ibrahim, has said.

    The NDIC boss stated this during a seminar organised by the corporation for management staff of the Federal Ministry of Finance, in Abuja on Monday.

    Ibrahim stated that the NDIC would collaborate with the finance ministry in order to achieve optimal performance, and ensure the stability of Nigeria’s financial system.

    The MD said that the seminar was apt considering the changes in the nation’s financial system, and the decisive policy actions and reforms often implemented to achieve the desired outcomes.

    Ibrahim said: “The FMF is a core pillar of Nigeria’s Financial Safety-Net as the Guarantor of the Lender-of-Last-Resort. Hence, it is necessary for the FMF to constantly engage in capacity building drive in a bid to upscale and harness the human resource potentials within the Ministry to be able to play the role of formulating and implementing fiscal policy in the economy.

    “This seminar helps in fostering collaboration and knowledge-sharing between the staff of the Federal Ministry of Finance (FMF) and its agencies, in a bid to achieve optimal performance.

    “The mandate of the NDIC is very unique to it. Hence, it is very important that the NDIC educates and enlightens all its stakeholders on its activities.

    “It is therefore a step in the right direction to organize this seminar as an avenue to create proper understanding of its activities by the staff of the FMF that are saddled with the task of supervising it.”

    The Permanent Secretary of the Federal Ministry of Finance, Mahmoud Isa-Dutse, who was represented by the Deputy Director of Home Finance of the Ministry of Finance, Mr. A.F. Ebeda, explained that aside the fact that the workshop is a really good opportunity for members of the FMF to update themselves on what is going on in the financial system, it is also a good platform to collaborate with NDIC to enhance capacity and share ideas.

    He added that that Fintech has humongous potentials to move financial services forward, especially now that the world is galvanizing towards a digitized system of rendering financial services.

  • NDIC board promises financial system stability

    Members of the newly inaugurated board of the Nigeria Deposit Insurance Corporation (NDIC) have stated their commitment to the formulation of policies that will enhance the safety and stability of the nation’s financial system.

    Its Chairperson, Mrs. Ronke Shokefun stated this at a retreat for the directors in Abuja.

    Mrs. Shokefun said the board is committed to providing NDIC with the desired leadership required to enable the nation achieve its goal of becoming one of the top 20 economies in the world by 2020.

    She said: “As people of proven integrity, we are to collectively paddle the boat of NDIC in particular and that of the nation’s banking sector in general to safety.

    “We owe this very important organisation and the nation that duty in order to justify the confidence reposed in us by President Muhammadu Buhari.”

    She described the role of the board as critical in the achievement of the Corporation’s mandate, adding that the retreat will enable members gain full insight into its mandate, operations, achievements and challenges.

    “The induction programme will provide the Board with the in-depth knowledge required for the formulation of policies to ensure enhanced service delivery by the Corporation,” she added.

    The NDIC Managing Director/Chief Executive, Umaru Ibrahim expressed hope that the retreat will provide the new board with the critical information and insight on the activities of the corporation ahead of their assumption of office.

  • NDIC harps on financial system stability

    Members of the newly inaugurated Board of the Nigeria Deposit Insurance Corporation (NDIC) have reiterated their commitment to the formulation of sound policies to enhance the safety and stability of the nation’s financial system.

    The Chairman, Mrs. Ronke Shokefun stated this at the opening ceremony of the maiden retreat for members of the Board in Abuja.

    As a critical member of the Nigeria financial safety net, Mrs. Shokefun said the new Board is committed to providing the NDIC with the desired leadership required to enable the nation achieve its goal of becoming one of the top twenty economies in the world by Year 2020.

    According to her, “As people of proven integrity, we are to collectively paddle the boat of NDIC in particular and that of the nation’s banking sector in general to safety.

    “We owe this very important organisation and the nation that duty in order to justify the confidence reposed in us by His Excellency, President Muhammadu Buhari”.

    The Chairman described the role of the Board as critical in the achievement of the Corporation’s mandate, adding that the retreat will enable members gain full insight into the Corporation’s mandate, its operations, achievements and challenges.

    “The induction program will provide the Board with the in-depth knowledge required for the formulation of policies to ensure enhanced service delivery by the Corporation,” she added.

    The NDIC Managing Director/Chief Executive, Umaru Ibrahim expressed hope that the retreat will provide the new Board with the critical information and insight on the activities of the Corporation ahead of their assumption of office.

     

  • NDIC shutdowns Fortis Microfinance Bank

    The Nigeria Deposit Insurance Corporation (NDIC), has announced the official liquidation of Fortis Microfinance Bank and its branches nationwide.

    The corporation made this known in a press statement posted on its official website.

    It assured insured depositors of the repayment of their monies.

    The statement reads: “The Nigeria Deposit Insurance Corporation (NDIC), the official Liquidator of Fortis Microfinance Bank whose license was recently revoked, has concluded arrangement to close the bank and its branches and pay the insured Depositors.

    “We are therefore calling all depositors of the bank to visit the bank’s branches and meet NDIC officials for the verification of their claims, commencing from Monday, 4th February, 2019 till Friday, 8th February, 2019.”

    It would be recalled that Fortis Microfinance Bank, which was licensed by the Central Bank of Nigeria (CBN) in 2007 and listed on the Nigerian Stock Exchange (NSE) as the first private sector led Microfinance Bank in 2012, had its shares suspended from being traded on the floor of the NSE for failing to adhere to standard corporate governance and extant post-listing requirements that make it mandatory for quoted companies to submit their financial statements within stipulated timelines.

    It had also been grappling with protracted governance crisis and internal breakdown of management controls which ultimately led to the resignation of its interim Managing Director, Mrs. Bunmi Lawsan; now the eventual collapse of the bank.

    In 2017, the banks nine month’s interim results clearly showed that with a customer deposit of about N7.9 billion, it only had less than 10 per cent of its total deposit which amounted to N440 million in its bank accounts.

    The bank’s depositors are advised to check the NDIC’s official website for more information on how they can reclaim their funds.

  • NDIC remits N7b into Consolidated Account

    The Nigeria Deposit Insurance Corporation (NDIC) says it has remitted N7billion into the Consolidated Revenue Account as its operating surplus for last year.

    Its Managing Director/Chief Executive, Mallam Umar Ibrahim, who spoke  yesterday in Abuja at the inauguration of newly appointed board of directors of the Corporation by Minister of Finance Hajiya Zainab Ahmed said the fund was the Corporation’s normal contribution as required by the Fiscal Responsibility Act.

    Before inaugurating the NDIC Board, Hajia Ahmed urged members of the board “to exhibit high ethical values in the discharge” of their responsibility.

    She told them: “You are assuming duty at a time when the Nigerian financial system is still facing some challenges and requires efforts aimed at addressing issues such as corporate governance, high level of non- performing loans etc. “You are also coming at a time when the system is grappling with the issues related to meeting the target of reducing financial exclusion in Nigeria to about 20 percent by year 2020″.

    She said the potential benefits and risks associated with the financial technology and block chain technology are also on the front burner. “These and other challenges can cause threats to the stability of our financial system and must be addressed promptly for the sector to play its role in facilitating the implementation of the Economic Recovery and Growth Plan (ERGP),” she said.

    Members of the NDIC board inaugurated on Thursday include Barrister Festus Keyamo, (SAN); Alhaji Garba Bello; Bri-Gen. Josef O. J. Okoloagu; Mustapha Adewale Mudashiru and Mr. Adewale W. Adeleke.

    Responding on behalf of the board members, board Chairman,  Mrs. Ronke Sokefun assured the minister that board members would put their wealth of experience gathered over the years to impact positively on the corporation overall mandate.

    She assured the minister and all stakeholders that they will live up to the responsibility reposed in them by President Muhamnadu Buhari.  “We will bring our wealth of experience to bear on the corporation and the Nigerian banking system   particular in the  discharge of corporation’s  mandate to  ensure strict compliance with corporate governance principle,”she said.

     

  • N9.86 NDIC debt: Ex-bankers, CBN, others may settle out of court

    Indications are that the over 10, 000 ex-banks staff who challenged their forceful retirement from active service at the court of law may reach an out-of-court settlement, The Nation has learnt.

    The affected erstwhile bankers had appeared in court at the National Industrial Court in Ikoyi last Wednesday in their large numbers to press home their demand for payment of their retirement benefits valued at over N9.8billion.

    The presiding judge Hon. Justice Mustapha Tijjani had ruled that the pleas could not be taken after the claimants’ counsels Messrs Dotun Onafowope and Daniel Omotilewa told the court that they would take interrogatories as they had evidential documents to present to the court.

    Justice Tijjani subsequently adjourned the case of the next hearing to March 14-15th, 2019.

    However, the claimants’ counsels, Mr. Dotun Onafowope andc had hinted in an interview with The Nation at the weekend that there is a possibility of an out-of-court settlement.

    According to the duo of Onafowope and Omotilewa the presiding judge Hon. Justice Mustapha Tijjani gave this hint at the open court, when he asked the parties to the dispute to weigh the option of alternative dispute resolution mechanism (ADR) to end the 14-years-old- litigation.

    Expatiating, the counsels told our correspondent that the judge is duty bound to encourage ADR, which is why her mooted the idea in the first place.

    “The judge met the parties to the dispute and said there was a possibility of resolving the matter out of court hence he requested the parties to meet and reach a compromise ahead of next hearing slated for March,” the counsels said.

    When The Nation broached the subject with Magnus Maduka, who chairs, the Incorporated Trustees of the Association of Ex-Staff of Non-Consolidated Banks of Nigeria, expressed confidence that if the out-of-court settlement would help to expedite the payment his members would welcome the development.

    Recounting some of their harrowing experiences since losing their jobs without being paid their terminal benefits since 2006, the chairman of the ex-bank workers, Maduka, claimed that no fewer than 100 of the workers had lost their lives owing to the hard conditions they were faced with while struggling to get their terminal benefits.

    “We were trying to explore the possibility of not going to court at all, these past years, believing that the CBN and the NDIC and the banks concerned would do the needful. But it does appear that we may have to wait forever and that is why we decided to take the matter before the court to get justice for all the affected parties,” Maduka said.

    It would be recalled that 14 years after the Central Bank of Nigeria revoked the operational licences of 13 commercial banks for failing to attain the N25bn capitalisation threshold then introduced and enforced in 2006 by the apex bank, majority of the affected.

    In a suit marked, NIC/LA/603/2016, filed through their lawyers, Messrs Joshua Oni and Omotilewa Daniel, the ex-bankers, who came under the aegis of the Incorporated Trustees of the Association of Ex-Staff of Non-Consolidated Banks of Nigeria, claimed that they were being jointly owed N9,166,424,276 as their entitlements, which they had been struggling to recover without success since 2006 when the banking sector reform took place.

    The ex-bankers, in their suit, accused the Central Bank of Nigeria of acting contrary to the law in the consolidation exercise, adding that the apex bank reneged on its promise to ensure that the interests of the disengaged workers were protected following the withdrawal of the licences of the eight banks that they were working for.

    The ex-bank workers are urging the court to declare that the NDIC and the CBN, which were joined in the suit as the first and second defendants respectively, had acted contrary to the law and prejudiced the ex-bank workers’ interests while entering into agreements with Ecobank, UBA, Skye Bank and Zenith Bank, to sell the assets of the eight banks.

    The claimants contended that it was unlawful and wrong for the NDIC and the CBN to sell the assets of the eight banks to Ecobank, UBA, Skye Bank and Zenith Bank, without also transferring the liability of paying the terminal benefits of the disengaged bank workers to Ecobank, UBA, Skye Bank and Zenith Bank.

    The ex-bank workers said they would have fought hard and ensured that their terminal benefits were paid before the “purported liquidation” was carried out if not for the undertaking by CBN, which, they said, gave them full confidence as to the sanctity of their terminal benefits.

  • CBN, NDIC to banks: look beyond profitability

    Banking thrives when lenders promote activities that make life better for the people. The Central Bank of Nigeria (CBN) and the Nigeria Deposit Insurance Corporation (NDIC) insist that banking should go beyond the profit motive, with lenders ensuring that the people and the environment where the business is done have something to cheer, writes COLLINS NWEZE.

    Banking is not all about profitability. It should be done with human face and recognition that the communities where the business is conducted should benefit from the profit that comes from it.

    The Central Bank of Nigeria (CBN), the Nigeria Deposit Insurance Corporation and Deposit Money Banks (DMBs) agree that banking can only thrive in an environment where Corporate Social Responsibility (CSR) and commitment to the communities where the business is done, are given a priority.

    The CBN has, therefore, encouraged the adoption of sustainable banking practice by banks, given that environmental and social responsibility support business success and long-term growth.

    According to the CBN and Nigeria Deposit Insurance Corporation (NDIC), sustainability reporting allows organisations measure, understand and communicate their environmental, social and governance performances.  Although the reporting system has gained currency and acceptance globally, only a few local banks and organisations encourage sustainability practices in their reports.

    To further involve corporate organisations, the Central Bank Governor, Godwin Emefiele and the NDIC Managing Director,  Umaru Ibrahim said the regulators will continue to renew its commitment towards the implementation of the NSBP, the achievements of the United Nation’s Sustainable Development Goals (SDGs) and the Paris Climate Change Agreement and reduce global poverty rate.

    For instance, two years ago, about 28 per cent of the African population was found to be severely food insecure, rising about three per cent from 2014. The continent is also found to have the highest prevalence of undernourishment – at about 20 per cent. This can basically be traced to conflict, lack of investment in agriculture, environmental challenges, but with poverty as a primary factor. Those living in poverty often cannot afford food of sufficient quality or quantity to live a healthy life.

    In 2018, the World Bank reported that extreme poverty has rapidly declined globally, with estimates showing that the number of extremely poor people—those who live on $1.90 a day or less—has fallen from 1.9 billion in 1990 to about 736 million in 2015. However, the number of people living in extreme poverty keeps increasing in Sub-Saharan Africa, actually peaking in 2018 with 437 million people, and then slowly decline again to reach 416 million in 2030.

    This year, most Nigerians were disturbed by the World Bank data referring to the most populous black country on the planet as the ‘poverty capital of the world’, with 86.9 million Nigerians still living in extreme poverty.

    The country is faced with numerous challenges, most of which are captured in the Sustainable Development Goals (SDGs) –  poverty eradication, hunger and food security, adequate provision of good health, education, advancing gender equality and women empowerment, developing infrastructure, provision of water and sanitation, provision of clean and affordable energy and taking effective action on climate change.

    In order to address these, leading financial institution, Access Bank facilitated the birth of the Nigerian Sustainability Business Principles (NSBP), by bringing together stakeholders in the financial sector with the aim of securing buy-in for the development of the nine principles . These include environment and social risk management, environment and social footprints, human rights, women’s economic empowerment, financial inclusion, environment and social governance, capacity building, collaborative partnerships, and reporting. Today, the principles are adopted by all banks in Nigeria including the CBN. This year  marks the fifth anniversary of the implementation of the NSBP in the Nigerian financial sector.

    Since 2008, the bank has successfully built a sustainability strategy driven by Sustainable Financial Services  developing innovative services that enhance the lives of customers and enables them reduce environmental and social impacts. The lender is helping in building sustainable economies – facilitating and financing sustainable economic growth through financial inclusion and education.Also, sustainable societies – supporting vibrant and successful communities in every market among others.

    Specifically, Access Bank recognises the importance of climate action, supporting people, businesses and communities in building sustainable enterprises, all of which has led to several awards both locally and internationally. Recently, it also received top honours at the 2018 Karlsruhe Sustainable Finance Awards in Germany, emerging as the winner in two categories and the Euromoney Awards for Excellence as ‘Africa’s Best Bank for Corporate Social Responsibility’ in London last July.

    During the bank’s 2018  Sustainability Awareness Week, Access Bank Group Managing Director/CEO , Herbert Wigwe, expressed the lender’s determination to create meaningful impact around the world and its subsidiaries by increasing awareness of best sustainable practices that can be implemented within its operational areas.

    He also listed profit, planet, and people as the pillars in which corporate sustainability are entrenched, stating that “this comes with a vision to be the most sustainable and respected bank in Africa, financing and facilitating brighter futures for all of our stakeholders through innovative services and best in class operations”.

    Sustainability,  Enterprise and Responsibility Awards (SERAs) CSR highlight different factors for improvement and national development, especially in working with different organisations to eradicate poverty and engender transformative change that guarantees a safe, equitable and sustainable world for both the current and future generations.

    The SERAs award is an annual project which aims to promote as well as raise awareness about the roles organisations play with an emphasis on their responsibility towards stakeholders and the social development of Africa.

    The 12th edition of the award was recently held on Saturday, December 1,  in Lagos. The event attracted several dignitaries and executives from diverse sectors. There were 22 categories open for contention, four of them were won by Access Bank including the Best Company in Partnership for Development, Best Corporate Communication Team, Sustainability Practitioner of the Year – received by Omobolanle Victor-Laniyan, Group Head of Sustainability Access Bank and the Most Responsible Business in Africa, both of which were the biggest awards of the night and for Access Bank, a back-to-back success.

    For Access Bank Plc., banking also includes empowering the people and giving their lives a positive meaning. That explains why it has continued to take steps that promote the common good. For instance, the Operations Unit of Access Bank Plc recently handed over two blocks of classrooms it renovated to the Keke  Nursery and Primary School, Agege, Lagos. The Bank did not only strengthen the dilapidated buildings and fortified them with iron formations, it also changed the roofs, windows and painted the classrooms to give them new looks.

    Speaking on the gesture,  Victor-Laniyan, said: “The fact is that in every environment we operate, we must make the people better, the environment better while trying to drive profit. So, we are not just focused on making money – it is just one aspect of the things we are keen on.”

  • NDIC begins verification of MfBs customers’ claims

    The Nigeria Deposit Insurance Corporation (NDIC) has started the verification of insured depositors of failed Micro Finance Banks (MfBs) claims so as to start payment, its MD/Chief Executive Officer, Umaru Ibrahim, has said.

    He said it is in fulfillment of the Corporation’s core mandate.

    Represented by the corporations’ Controller, Kano Zonal Office, Alhaji Bashir Nuhu, at the NDIC’s Special Day at the Kano International Trade Fair, the CEO said  from the records obtained so far, majority of the depositors, especially in the liquidated MfBs have less than N200,000,00 in their accounts.

    He added that the measure adopted by the corporation on MFBs will enhance financial system stability in subsequent periods, adding that the corporation has embarked on various public awareness campaigns in the media in order to forestall future reoccurrence.

    ”The corporation will continue to work closely, with the Central Bank of Nigeria (CBN) to ensure effective supervision of the banks so as to ensure strict adherence to rules and regulations guiding banking operations in order to protect depositors in the domestic financial system against flagrant disregard of extant rules by management of financial institutions.

    ”The collaboration with CBN will help to minimize occurrence of unlawful insiders dealings, weak internal control and overall non-compliance to prudential guidelines,” he said.

    Also, it earlier vowed to not only probe but prosecute all those behind the failure of the defunct Sky Bank Plc, so as to serve as deterrent to others.

    He said the NDIC adopted Bridge Bank option to resolve the failure of the defunct Sky Bank Plc, following the revocation of its operational license by the CBN.

    With this expert arrangement, he said the Polaris Bank was able to continue the banking operations in the 277 branches of the defunct Skye Bank, adding that about 6,000 jobs were saved and depositors have unhindered access to their deposits in excess of N949.60 billion as at June 2018.

  • CBN, NDIC to banks: look beyond profitability

    Banking thrives in an environment where lenders promote activities that make life better for the people. Indeed, banking should strive to meet the triple bottom line: people, planet and profit. Regulators insist that beyond the profit motive, banks should ensure that people and the environment where the business is done have something to cheer. COLLINS NWEZE writes that lenders following the directive are being recognised.

    Banking is not all about profitability. It should be done with human face and recognition that the communities where the business is conducted should benefit from the profit that come from it.

    The Central Bank of Nigeria (CBN), the Nigeria Deposit Insurance Corporation and Deposit Money Banks (DMBs) agreed that banking can only thrive in an environment where Corporate Social Responsibility (CSR) and commitment to the communities where the business is done are given a priority. They have consistently advised banks to look beyond profitability in their operations.

    The CBN has, therefore, encouraged the adoption of sustainable banking practice by banks, given that environmental and social responsibility support business success and long-term growth.

    For Access Bank Plc, banking also include empowering the people and giving their lives a positive meaning. That explains why the bank has continued to take steps that promote common-good.

    The bank’s Group Managing Director/Chief Executive Officer, Herbert Wigwe, said the lender defines sustainability as providing innovative solutions to support global efforts in addressing social, environmental and economic challenges.

    Wigwe expressed the bank’s determination to create meaningful impact around the world and its subsidiaries by increasing awareness of best sustainable practices that can be implemented within its operational areas.

    He listed profit, planet and people as the pillars in which corporate sustainability are entrenched, explained that the pillars have been embedded into how the bank carries out its operations.

    He said: “This comes with a vision to be the most sustainable and respected bank in Africa, financing and facilitating brighter futures for all of our stakeholders through innovative services and best in class operations.”

    He said the lender has, in line with the sustainability practices, continued to develop simpler and smarter products and services with relevance to Nigerians, not losing focus of its vision to be the world’s most respected African bank.

    Wigwe restated Access Bank’s determination to set standards for sustainable business practices capable of bringing out the best out of employees, deliver superior value to customers and provide innovative solutions for the markets and communities it serves.

    The bank’s sustainability footprints are grouped into four units- economic development; environmental responsibility; sustaining societies; collaborations and partnerships.

     

    More banks embrace sustainable banking

    Diamond Bank’s Managing Director/Chief Executive Officer, Uzoma Dozie described the bank’s investment and focus on the Micro Small and Medium Enterprises (MSMEs) segment as strategic and predictive.

    In his view, the future of sustainable banking in Nigeria is retail, therefore, it is necessary to grow and consolidate its strength in the segment.

    Managing Director Development Bank of Nigeria (DBN), Tony Okpanachi, said the bank’s operation in addition to its mandate, seeks to achieve the NSBP, where financial inclusion ranks high, as well as the UN SDGs and in line with the Economic Recovery and Growth Plan (ERGP) of the Federal Government.

    The First Bank of Nigeria Ltd, a member of FBN Holdings Plc, has also initiated its Corporate Responsibility and Sustainability (CR&S) Week in over 3,000 secondary schools across the country to improve financial literacy and inclusion among students.

    The scheme, which involves career counseling session, is part of activities marking the second edition of the bank’s CR&S Week for the year.

    Speaking at Yaba College of Technology Secondary School, Its Managing Director, Adesola Adeduntan said the week-long event was the bank’s brand promise to always put stakeholders’ needs first.

    For instance, the Operations Unit of Access Bank Plc recently handed over two blocks of classrooms it renovated to the Keke Nursery and Primary School, Agege, Lagos.

    The bank did not only strengthen the dilapidated buildings and fortified them with iron formations, it also changed the roofs, windows and painted the classrooms to give them new looks.

    Speaking at the presentation of the classrooms renovated by the Corporate Operations Unit, Access Bank Plc, to the school management, the bank’s Group Head, Corporate Operations, Banjo Adegbohungbe, said the lender and its workforce will continue to assist and partner Lagos State to touch lives of the future generation. Government alone, he said, cannot support and maintain the schools, adding that private sector support is also critical to ensuring that those public schools have the right tools to function effectively.

    He said the bank believed in CSR and making the society better than it met it. “At Access Bank, we believe we should give back to the society to ensure that the learning environment improves. The staff of the Corporate Operations Unit of the bank choose which project they want to finance bet it healthcare or infrastructure. The staff have continued money to make these projects a reality,” he said.

    Also speaking on the gesture, Access Bank’s Deputy Group Managing Director, Roosevelt Ogbonna, said each time the lender speaks on governance and sustainability, it normally focus on People, Profit and Planet.

    “The fact is that in every environment we operate, we must make the people better, the planet better while trying to drive profit. So, we are not just focused on making money, it is just one aspect of the things we are keen on. So, if you listen to the bank and some of the things we boost about, is about how we have brought sustainability and governance into how business is done within our market,” he said.

     

    Awards for CSR 

    The bank has won the SERAS Corporate Social Responsibility (CSR) award. It is an annual event aimed at promoting and raising awareness about the roles that the corporates and private sector play in the development of Africa with emphasis on the various schemes and innovative programmes they employ to achieve their goal.

    The 12th edition of the award held on Saturday, December 1, 2018 at Muson Centre in Lagos. The event attracted several dignitaries and business executives. There was a total of 22 categories for the night and Access Bank won four of those categories: Best company in partnership for development, best corporate communication team, sustainability practitioner of the year–received by Omobolanle Victor-Laniyan, Group Head of Sustainability Access Bank  and the most responsible business in Africa, which is the biggest awards of the Night.

    Since 2008 Access bank has consistently embedded consideration for the people, planet and profit to its business consideration, making sustainability a bedrock of all of its business processes and operation. The bank has won several awards, both locally and internationally, for its commitment to running a sustainable business. Access Bank received top honours at the 2018 Karlsruhe Sustainable Finance Awards in Germany, emerging as the winner across two categories and the Euromoney Awards for Excellence as “Africa’s Best Bank for Corporate Social Responsibility” in London in July.

    Access Bank believed that sustainable business is a more profitable business. Few weeks ago, the bank organised the sustainability awareness week, a week-long activity at its branches globally in celebration of the remarkable achievements recorded since 2008.

     

    CBN speaks

    According to the CBN and Nigeria Deposit Insurance Corporation (NDIC), sustainability reporting allows organisational measure, understand and communicate their environmental, social and governance performances.

    Although the reporting system has gained currency and acceptance globally, only a few local banks and organisations encourage sustainability practices in their reports.

    Governor Emefiele and NDIC Managing Director, Umaru Ibrahim, said the regulators will continue to renew its commitments towards the implementation of the NSBP and the achievements of the United Nation’s (UN) Sustainable Development Goals (SDGs) and the Paris Climate Change Agreement because a reduction in plastic use will bring about reductions in greenhouse gas emissions and carbon footprint.

    At a recent launch of Nigeria’s Green Bond market development programme in Lagos, Ogbonna said: “Our strategy, together with a solid corporate governance structure, has enabled Access Bank to retain its leadership position, contributing significantly to the economic growth of Nigeria and the broader African continent.”

    of Lagos State Governor Akinwunmi Ambode told his audience at the launch that the initiative would present profitable investment opportunities to stakeholders and investors, adding that the finance would help to reduce greenhouse emission and mitigate harsh effects of climate change in the Centre of Excellence.

    Represented by his deputy, Mrs. Oluranti Adebule, the governor assured that his administration would take maximum advantage of the opportunity embedded in the Green Bond Market to reverse the harsh trends of climate change.

    He expressed optimism that the Green Bond will enhance execution of projects to mitigate effects of climate change in Lagos, while asserting that the success achieved during the N10.69 billion Green Bond issued by the Federal Government last year, was a testimony to the fact that climate bond investment is a viable option for promoting sustainable growth in the environment.

    Climate Bonds Director of Market Development, Justine Leigh-Bell said: “The Nigeria Green Bonds Market Development programme is a big step towards unlocking the full potential for domestic issuance while developing a pipeline of green investment opportunities and engaging with local and international investors. We are excited about the future in the region.”