Premiere Academy is committed to unravelling the cause of Keren’s death
Premiere Academy Lugbe, Abuja has pledged its unreserved commitment to cooperating with the law enforcement agency to unravel the cause of Miss. Keren-Happuch Akpagher’s death who until her demise on 22nd June 2021 was an SS 1 student of the school.
The Acting Principal of Premiere Academy, Mr. Chris Akinsonwon restated the school’s commitment while addressing some allegations made against the school by the mother of the deceased – Mrs. Vihimga Akpagher in a press conference organised by ROOT TV.
Describing the allegations as disturbing, Mr. Akinsonwon said that Premiere Academy is bereaved at the moment because it has lost a future leader – Late Miss. Keren-Happuch Akpagher.
He further emphasized that Premiere Academy wholeheartedly carried out its expected responsibilities in taking care of Keren in all facets especially health-wise until the last day she left the school in a healthy condition as opposed to allegations that she was in an unhealthy state when she left the school.
In his words, “since Keren’s admission, the school managed her Type-1 Diabetes by administering the two times daily dose of Insulin injection with a controlled-diet which helped to maintain her blood glucose level until the day she was released to her mother on Saturday, 19 June, 2021.”
Additionally, he said that as a school that cares so much about its students’ well being mobilized and visited Keren at the hospital the day it learned of her hospitalization at Queens Hospital Wuse 2, Abuja, and has also visited the family repeatedly since her death.
Premiere Academy disclosed that it got to know about the alleged sexual molestation of Miss. Keren Akpagher in the media because it was never mentioned throughout its interaction with Mrs. Akpagher – Keren’s mother while Keren was hospitalized.
However, according to the acting principal Mr. Akinsonwon, the school swung into action by constituting an Internal Investigation Panel to probe the allegation and if anyone is found culpable he will be handed over to the police. In his words, “the school has honoured invitations from the Nigerian Police and we are cooperating with them to unravel the cause of Keren’s death.”
The Acting Principal stated that the school witnessed the Autopsy exercise and is waiting for the report. “As a school, we are fully committed to unravelling the cause of Keren’s death and we want justice for Late Miss. Keren-Happuch Akpagher if the allegations concerning her death are anything to go by.”
In a recent development, the Acting Principal responded to a Facebook post by an activist with the caption; “Unmasking Adams Idris: A Suspected Peadophile at Premiere Academy.” He stated that Premiere Academy is not a place for peadophiles and further asserted that any publication or post that does not emanate from the School’s Management or Board of Governors is not a representation of the school on the alleged cause of Keren’s death. According to Mr. Akinsonwon the school will deem it necessary to always inform the public as the event unfolds.
In his words; “Premiere Academy is safe for all students and over time we have demonstrated zero tolerance for sexual harassment of any kind – verbal or physical. This is evident in the suspension and subsequent dismissal of a staff member who was culpable of being involved in an “unguarded talk” with a student. “The police-ordered autopsy procedure report is not out, and as a school, we are waiting for the autopsy report.”
“We, therefore, enjoin all concerned stakeholders to patiently wait for the autopsy report.
The Conglomerate with strategic investments in the Power, Hospitality, and Energy sectors, recorded a profit after tax of N6.5bn, rising by 713% up from N0.8bn recorded in June of the previous year. Other key highlights of the result include the following:
Revenue rose by 53%, from N35.0bn in June 2020 to N53.3bn in the period under consideration.
Gross profit grew by 60%, from N14.7bn in June 2020 to N23.5bn in June 2021.
Profit before tax rose by 689% from N0.9bn in June 2020 to N7.1b in June 2021.
Commenting on the performance, Transcorp’s President/Group CEO, Mrs. Owen Omogiafo, reiterated the Conglomerate’s commitment towards producing long-term value and sustainable impact. “We are pleased to see the sustained growth in our group performance, which was achieved as a result of the improved performance across all the sectors we operate in. The revenue achieved in our power business grew by 48%, as a result of improved gas supply and increased generation capacity”, she stated.
Commenting on the hospitality sector, Omogiafo stated that the company’s strategic actions have resulted in a growth in revenue of up to 84%, despite the ongoing impact of the COVID-19 epidemic on the Nigerian and global hospitality industries. She expressed confidence in the company’s recovery strategies, citing the recent official launch of Aura, the company’s digital hospitality platform, as a testament to that confidence.
On the Transcorp Group’s capacity to sustain its performance, Omogiafo said, “We do not plan to rest on our oars. We will continue to sweat our existing assets and explore new frontiers, as we continue to deliver on our purpose of Improving Lives and Transforming Nigeria.”
“Ecobank Remains Payment Gateway in Africa” – Akinwuntan
The Managing Director, Ecobank Nigeria, Patrick Akinwuntan has reiterated that the Pan African bank remains the payment gateway for Africa. Akinwuntan who was speaking on the topic “Optimizing sustainable trade, investment and regional economic integration through effective partnerships between ECOWAS institutions and regional institutions and the organized private sector” at a webinar organised by the Lagos Chamber of Commerce and Industry (LCCI) to commemorate the 46th anniversary of ECOWAS on Monday, stated that the bank’s state of the art digital payment and collection platform is promoting trade and commerce across the African continent.
According to him, Ecobank is present in all ECOWAS member states, stressing that the bank will continue to leverage its knowledge, footprint, and payment channels to promote trade and economic activities through its unique and large pan-African network that positions it to support businesses at all levels. He noted that “naturally for us as a Pan African bank, we are set up to support the economic integration and development of Africa. We have the commitment, capacity and network to support the realization of that objective. We have a platform that leverages technology which enables businesses within ECOWAS to operate as one market. In terms of payment and collection, we have just one banking platform that serves an entire industry. If you are an individual and you open an account and get our Mobile app, you have access to the 33 countries where we operate, and you can transact across these countries. It is a payment switch that ensures payment without going through SWIFT but ensures instant value across the network. For businesses, we have Omni platform, which is a web-based payment platform that enables you to first see your position across the 33 countries and make instant payment.”
Ecobank Patrick Akinwuntan
Mr. Akinwuntan added that Ecobank is also providing access to market without language barriers; building capacity of Micro, Small and Medium Enterprises (MSMEs), and empowering women through various products such as the highly innovative Ellevate, a woman focused package targeting at least 40milion women owned business in the MSME space across Africa, by supporting them to become big businesses. “We provide access to the market, we know the continent, we know the sub-region and ECOWAS, this is part of what we offer at Ecobank. When you discuss with us in Ecobank, we are able to translate into the language you understand. Our financial statements are in English and French. In terms of MSMEs, which are critical, we have put in place an MSME Academy in partnership with AUDA-NEPAD solely for capacity building. But more importantly, we have also set aside N100 billion in Nigeria to support MSMEs. We have a regional trade desk that supports you by giving you access to market, finance, and capacity building. We are able to empower the MSME to gradually become pan African business partners leveraging technology.
Earlier in his welcome address, LCCI President, Mrs Toki Mabogunje said the webinar is to explore the opportunities and challenges of economic integration for stakeholders and for ECOWAS member states, adding that the forum also serves to examine the various trade policies, intra-regional commerce, smooth integration between member states and potential markets with borderless opportunities. She said LCCI will continue to partner with ECOWAS institutions to realise its objective of wealth creation, economic integration and commitment to peace and development.
Special Guest of Honour, Minister of Industry, Trade and Investment, Otunba Niyi Adebayo lauded the efforts of ECOWAS in boosting trade in the sub-region. He was optimistic that collaboration with the organized private sector would further boost commerce and the economy of member states.
Ecobank’s Half-Year Profit Jumps By 33%, Revenue Rises
Ecobank Transnational Incorporated (ETI) recorded a 33.04 per cent rise in its profit before tax for the first half of the year ended June 30, 2021. In its unaudited financial statement for the first half of the year 2021, Ecobank said its operating income improved by 15.35 per cent year-on-year from June 30, 2020. It said its operating profit before impairment charges and taxation rose by 32.62 per cent to N138.26bn.
At the end of H1 2021, Ecobank’s total assets increased to N11.02tn from N10.38tn in December 2020. The loans and advances to its customers fell from N3.70tn in H1 2020 to N3.63tn in H1 2021, while customer deposits in all its operating locations increased by 7.38 per cent from N7.32tn to N7.86tn. the total equity depreciated by 1.06 per cent as it reduced from N811.75m to N803.18bn.
Commenting, Ade Ayeyemi, Ecobank Group CEO, said: “We saw continued and sustained resilience in our performance, which is indicative of the success of our ‘execution momentum’ drive. As a result, we generated a return on tangible equity of 16.1% versus 15.2% a year ago and increased diluted EPS and tangible book value per share by 19% and 6%, respectively. In addition, profit before tax increased 23% to $210 million.”
“Group revenues rose 7% to $825 million, despite the challenging operating environment with the third wave of coronavirus infections threatening economic recovery. Our diversified pan-African business model continued to rise to the challenge. Revenues grew 13% and 6% in our Commercial and Consumer businesses, while our focus on growing the trade business led to increased trade assets. The slowly increasing business and spend activity drove a 20% rise in our Payments business’s revenue to $90 million. Deposits growth was strong, with total deposits now over $19 billion, an increase of $1.0 billion in the second quarter and $2.4 billion in a year, driven by our omnichannel strategy. Though loan growth remained flat, we are focused on providing support to MSMEs for growth,” Ayeyemi added.
“I am proud of the team’s hard work in driving efficiency, which continues to reflect in our cost-to-income ratio of 58.7% ahead of guidance and progressing well toward our medium-term goal of approximately 55%. In addition, credit quality continued to be exceptionally strong. As a result, our NPL ratio of 7.4% is a substantial improvement from the prior year’s 9.8%, as we also build reserves to insulate the balance sheet with an NPL coverage ratio of 86.7% and pushing towards our near-term target of 90%,” Ayeyemi continued.
“We successfully raised $350 million Tier 2 Sustainability Notes in June, the first-ever by a financial institution in sub-Saharan Africa and first to have a Basel III-compliant 10-year non-call 5 structure outside South Africa in 144A/RegS format. The Bond was 3.6 times oversubscribed, demonstrating strong confidence in the Ecobank Group and our commitment to the sustainability of our communities and their social needs. I am deeply grateful to all stakeholders and must thank our clients for continuing to put their trust in Ecobank for their diverse banking needs.” Ayeyemi concluded.
For the third straight offseason, Westbrook has been traded to a new team, a new organization, but this time a familiar city. The Oklahoma City fan favorite is heading back to his state, California.
What feels like a decade in the making, and with no shortage of pre-made photoshop jersey swaps, the LA Lakers add hometown hero Russell Westbrook. The UCLA product, who has already made history in this league, is in search of that elusive first NBA Championship.
The nine-time All-Star, two-time scoring champ, three-time assist champ, who has made nine All-NBA teams, and the 2016-17 NBA MVP is teaming up with LeBron James and Anthony Davis in LaLa Land.
This will be the best chance of capturing a ring since Westbrook was teammates with Kevin Durant.
Sure, there are some concerns with this fit. Mainly spacing, but LeBron has consistently made teammates better and found ways to maximize the roster around him.
With AD and LBJ more comfortable playing the center and power forward spots, it makes room for Westbrook leading the charge as the point guard. Barring health, the Purple and Gold will be must-watch TV.
For Westbrook, this will be a legacy-defining move. If anyone is up for the challenge, it is Russ. However, the unfair slander will only grow louder if he butts-heads with King James, and things go south with the Lakers.
Though, if the LA trio wins a title, the toxic behavior of NBA stan culture silently fades away. Westbrook gets his respect and gets to rise the Larry O’Brien for his hometown team.
Are you rooting for the Lakers this season now that they have added Russell Westbrook?
Heritage Bank hailed for supporting Ibadan Golf Club
Heritage Bank Plc has been commended for its continued supports to Nigeria’s sports’ sector, especially backing the Ibadan Golf Club’s 30th anniversary event.
The event that attracted dignitaries and stakeholders from various parastatals also had the presence of the Governor of Oyo State, Engr. Oluseyi Makinde and over 150 golfers who participated in the tournament during the weeklong celebration.
In a speech during the grand finale of the 30th anniversary of the club, the Captain of the Ibadan Golf Club, Oladiran Ibironke commended one of Nigeria’s most vibrant financial institutions, Heritage Bank and others for providing financial support to ensure the success of the event.
“Special thanks to Heritage Bank Plc., the anniversary’s major sponsor for enlarging our coast financially in order to make the anniversary elaborate and eventful. You will forever be remembered in the history of Ibadan Golf Club,” he stated.
Ibironke also praised the efforts of the founding fathers of the club while tracing the history of how the sporting club has continued to blossom.
He stated that tremendous transformations had occurred within the club since inception 30 years ago.
“We are celebrating 30 years today because some great minds came together and established what we are celebrating today.
“From the history that we heard, they started from Ibadan Recreation Club before moving over to where we are today in 1990,” Ibironke said.
Speaking on the 30th anniversary, the Ag. Group Head, Corporate Communications, Heritage Bank, Ozena Utulu noted that the Bank is delighted to be the lead sponsor and to be associated with Ibadan Golf Club, stating that the sponsorship is hinged on its brand’s passion to support sports, especially golf in promoting health, wellbeing, and nation building.
She stated that Heritage Bank, as the sponsor of Ibadan Golf Club’s 30th anniversary, is working assiduously towards achieving its vision of becoming a bank known for promoting healthy lifestyles and the general wellbeing of the society at large.
“Heritage Bank believes in development. We have the tenacity to develop and sport is a way of developing Nigerians both young and old. We want to encourage the golfers; I believe that this type of games is capable of helping them to keep healthy and fit,” Utulu stated.
HOW N10M WINNER WILL EMERGE FROM FIRSTBANK SPONSORED THE VOICE NIGERIA 3
…As The Voice Nigeria Season 3 Enters Final Stage.
By Bolaji Israel
UN1TY Limited and Livespot360, producers of the global talents reality series, have emphasised that public voting has become very crucial at this stage to keep vocalists fighting for the grand prize on The Voice Nigeria 3 series, sponsored by FirstBank, Baba Ijebu and Airtel.
To keep their favourite vocalists on the show, viewers have to dial *894*7*talent’s code#.
The voting code of your preferred contestant to win the competition is in the embedded Instagram post below:
The International talents reality series designed to discover and harness music talents in Nigeria is in its third season in Nigeria.
Scores of vocalists have performed on the highly competitive show but dropped out going through the Auditions, Blinds, Knockouts, Battles and Live Shows stages.
With an electrifying mix of pulsating musical performances, music training, glamorous fashion and life enriching entertainment, the The Voice Nigeria 3 continues to glitter to the very grand finale
Voting opens on Saturday at 9:00pm and closes at 11:59pm on Thursdays.
Lead show sponsor, FirstBank in a statement by its Group Head, Marketing and Corporate Communications, Folake Ani-Mumuney, reiterated that The Voice Nigeria 3 is a Reality TV show designed to discover and promote talented singers to actualise their dreams of becoming international stars which aligns with the Bank’s commitment to provide a platform for nurturing and showcasing talents and driving social cohesion.
Market formation framework, driver to optimally develop solid mineral sector- Sekibo
Sekibo
MD/CEO of Heritage Bank Plc, Ifie Sekibo has said that market formation framework is the key to optimally exploit Nigeria’s precious metal and solid minerals endowments.
He disclosed this during a webinar organised by the Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC) in collaboration with the Federal Ministry of Mines and Steel Development with the theme, “Financing the Solid Minerals Sector through the Capital Market and the Critical Role of Commodity Exchanges.”
Sekibo explained that a fully established market formation process that would lead to having a Corporation as an integrated solid mineral institution like NNPC which allows the collateralisation of assets those banks can rely on for alternative funding options.
According to him, this will guarantee other creative ways of raising funds for financing commercial activities relating to solid minerals and viable projects along its value chain.
Sekibo who was represented by the Divisional Head, Strategy and Business Solutions, of the Bank, Olusegun Akanji, said for the sector to be viable, it requires lots of converged government interventions because for any development focused sector to kick-off around the world, it needs government intervention to lay the foundation for the private sector and funders to step-in and pool their resources.
“Once, we can collateralise these assets, whether they are under the ground or being determined, you use different instruments to bring liquidity into them. Then investors will follow up once we have established there is enough they can explore.” the MD stated.
He further suggested that finance sector regulators need to expand its Prudential Guidelines to accommodate the instruments such that precious metal backed or solid minerals backed assets could qualify as part of the computation of liquidity ratios.
“Once banks start injecting their resources, customers would certainly follow that trend. You can start arranging for sophisticated solutions like bonds, bullion backed assets and pension notes. Again, banks will have to be poised to hold the funding that comes from this sector; that way, they can open new transactional frontiers either locally or internationally.
“At the base of this, are the issues of pricing and integrity of the market. Once banks play in that sector and we have a government institution like the NNPC type to hold all these documentations, it would be very easy to establish price discovery on an ongoing basis. This will in turn attract international funders, hedge funds and retail investors. Today, we have retail bonds in the same way; we can have gold backed or any of the solid mineral assets where retail investors can put in the funds,” Sekibo explained.
Meanwhile, it would be recalled that Heritage Bank Plc has said its involvement in the private sector collaboration with Dukia Gold & Precious Metals Refining Co. Limited is set to unlock the over N344 trillion market worth of gold investible instruments in the solid minerals sector.
However, he reiterated that consistent packaged framework, which could only be held by an established government institution, as part of the layers of framework, would help to tackle major challenges in trying to support Dukia Gold’s clients.
“With consistent packaged framework, it will be easier for Dukia Gold and help in less spending. If Dukia Gold should speak of their challenges, they will speak about tonnes of tonnes of documents they have to produce. But with a unified source of documentation, it makes the process easier and improves cost management. These are some of the challenges we have experienced in trying to support a few clients we worked with,” Sekibo stated.
Picture: Fidelity Bank MD’s Visit to Lord’s Chosen Charismatic Revival Church
The Executive Management of Fidelity Bank Plc, led by Managing Director/CEO, Mrs. Nneka Onyeali-Ikpe recently paid a courtesy visit on the General Overseer, Lord’s Chosen Charismatic Revival Church, Pastor Lazarus Muoka. Specifically, the visit was to foster good working relationship with the Church and find ways of serving the church and its members better. The MD who was accompanied by the Executive Director, Lagos and South West, Fidelity Bank Plc, Dr. Ken Opara were warmly received by Pastor Muoka and his wife, Pastor (Mrs.) Joy Muoka.
L-R: Executive Director, Lagos and South West, Fidelity Bank Plc. Dr. Ken Opara; Managing Director / Chief Executive Officer, Fidelity Bank Plc, Mrs. Nneka Onyeali – Ikpe; General Overseer, Lord’s Chosen Charismatic Revival Church, Pastor Lazarus Muoka; Wife of the General Overseer, Pastor (Mrs.) Joy Muoka during the courtesy visit paid by Management of Fidelity Bank to Lord’s Chosen Charismatic Revival Church recently.
FirstBank Celebrates 2021 Corporate Responsibility and Sustainability Week, Calls for All to Adopt Kindness as a Way of Life
The best definition of kindness is not one provided by any of the world’s best dictionaries but one demonstrated by how we treat others on a daily basis. Kindness is a universal language that does not require any special knowledge, exposure, skills, training or background to understand and appreciate it as a beneficiary or observer of a kind act. Neither is any special knowledge or training required to show and extend it to others. Just as anyone and everyone can be shown acts of kindness, all persons without exception can and ought to show and extend acts of kindness to others. Kindness flows from deep within us, from the better angels of our nature. Hence, the common idiom “the milk of human kindness”.
This is probably the backdrop to the theme “Kindness…a Way of Life”, which FirstBank has chosen for commemoration of its 2021 Corporate Responsibility and Sustainability Week (CR&S Week). This year’s CR&S Week, scheduled to hold from 26th – 30th July 2021, will feature Kind Comments Days, visits to orphanages/less privilege homes, webinars focused on the kindness theme, SPARK school engagement among other activities – lined up for each of the days. The yearly CR&S Week is a dedicated week designed to offer FirstBank staff, customers and the public opportunities to demonstrate the milk of human kindness that flows in them and give their time and resources to defined causes. It seeks to amplify FirstBank’s innate culture of giving and volunteering as embodied in its Employee Giving and Volunteering programme.
The Corporate Responsibility and Sustainability Week was introduced in 2017 as part of the bank’s longstanding Employee Giving and Volunteering programme created to enable and encourage staff to give back to society through donations and volunteering. Specially designed to reignite acts of random kindness in the society with events that are tailored to reorient people towards the right values, it provides a veritable platform for encouraging the citizenry to intentionally create positive impact in their immediate environment. One of the main highlights of the first CR&S Week was the SPARK Initiative. S.P.A.R.K stands for Start Performing Acts of Random Kindness. But originally the “S” stood for “Staff”. It was changed to “Start” to broaden the initiative beyond just staff and encourage everyone else to be part of the kindness brigade. Also, “P” originally stood for “Promoting” but was changed to “Performing” to convey the sense that participants are equally involved in actually doing kind acts and not only promoting kindness.
Held between 25 – 29 September 2017 with “Promoting Kindness: Putting You First” as theme, the maiden CR&S Week was the first of its kind in Nigeria’s financial services industry. It highlighted the role FirstBank’s corporate citizenship interventions was playing in driving positive impact across various communities – all within one compact week. It was aimed at encouraging people everywhere to step out of their comfort zones, shift attention from themselves and their personal needs to others in society who have not been as fortunate as they have and perform a random act of kindness towards them. The first edition of the CR&S Week provided opportunity for FirstBank staff to give their time and resources to promote acts of random kindness within their communities and contribute to the welfare and well-being of others through giving and visits to orphanages/homes of the less fortunate and internally displaced people (IDPs). Within the same Week the bank held career counselling sessions with secondary school students across the six geo-political regions in Nigeria with FirstBank staff coordinating the impactful sessions that inculcated the values of financial literacy and inclusion in young students. Also, staff had the opportunity to nominate beneficiaries they believe are deserving of random of acts of kindness. Through this activity, Baby Ijeoma was nominated as one of the beneficiary that received corrective heart surgery in India which was in partnership with Vama Wave Foundation. The impact of the first edition went beyond Nigeria as FirstBank’s subsidiaries in sub-Saharan Africa and the UK also participated, benefitting people and at least 22 charities in six countries.
The second edition of the CR&S Week held from 19 – 23 June 2018. Themed “Touching Lives: You First”, the 2018 Week was intended to demonstrate FirstBank brand promise to always put stakeholders first. It focused mainly on five key initiatives/activities. First was the launch of a partnership with VisionSpring to advance social impact by providing vision screening and affordable eyeglasses for 10,000 low-income earners. This aligned with the bank’s financial inclusion and financial literacy approach of promoting accessible and affordable financial products and services to disadvantaged groups with the goal of bringing these marginalised populations into the mainstream economy, improving their chances for resilient livelihoods and financial stability. Second were giving and visits to orphanages/less privilege homes. This was the biggest platform for employee engagement during the week. It followed a needs assessment of the orphanages to be visited to enable employees donate appropriate items, and employees responded generously, donating at a scale that had never been done before. In all, eight countries witnessed this initiative while more than 26 charities participated.
Celebration of the UN International Widows’ Day on 23rd June 2018, which coincided with the last day of the CR&S Week, was the third activity. Driven by the International Women’s Society (IWS) in Lagos with whom the bank partnered to organise an empowerment outreach for 500 widows in Lagos, it provided start-up capital and capacity building required to successfully run start-ups and small businesses, to the widows. Fourth was a Career Counselling Day for over 10,000 senior secondary school students, as part of the broader FutureFirst programme of the bank aimed at ensuring the youth are empowered to be financially independent through fulfilling careers and the right financial knowledge. Fifth and final was the SPARK (Start Performing Acts of Random Kindness) initiative, which included a SPARK Day set aside in the bank for people to act within their individual spheres of influence to promote kindness. The initiative also saw the bank receiving about 200 internal and external nominations of people deserving of kindness, out of which 24 beneficiaries were to emerge. The 2018 Week was marked across Nigeria’s six geopolitical zones with two states from each zone, totalling 12 states in all. It was also commemorated in the six countries/markets outside Nigeria where FirstBank already had subsidiaries – UK, Ghana, Democratic Republic of Congo (DRC), Guinea, Sierra Leone and Senegal.
In 2019, the CR&S Week held from 1 – 6 July 2019 with the theme “Ripples of Kindness: Putting You First”. The theme was informed by the bank’s belief that every act of kindness (regardless of how little or in whatever form) ignites a ripple effect that goes on without end. The year’s CR&S Week focused mainly on the SPARK initiative, which had gained so much traction since its humble beginnings in 2017. A Kindness Manifesto for both internal stakeholders and external stakeholders was introduced. There were other new activities or initiatives. A Nice Comments Day was introduced for the first time and scheduled to hold on the first day of the CR&S Week. The basis for it, according to the bank’s committee that oversaw the planning and implementation of the 2019 CRS Week, is the important place of words in the “kindness ecosystem”. The committee underlined this point when it noted as follows: “One of the truest reflections of how kind we are is our choice of words. That’s why we have created Nice Comments Day to help build a kinder world [through kind words].”
Another new initiative introduced in 2019 was the SPARK School Engagement, which involved launching the SPARK initiative in schools to promote the 3Cs projected as the pillars of kindness – Compassion, Civility and Charity. The schools – secondary schools across Nigeria – were to be visited to educate students on acts of kindness, encouraging them to make kindness a lifestyle. A crowd-funding initiative was also added in 2019 to enable both employees and external stakeholders donate to defined humanitarian causes, such as supporting widows, sending children (from indigent homes) to school and providing health care for the physically challenged and the old. As at August 2019, nearly N7 million had been raised through the crowd-funding initiative.
The regular initiatives/activities were also retained in 2019. There were visits to orphanages/less privilege homes. Widows’ empowerment was organised in collaboration with International Women’s Society (IWS), Nigeria to empower a select number of widows across Nigeria. The implementation in Nigeria covered the six geopolitical zones with activities held in four states per zone, amounting to 24 states in all. Six subsidiaries of FirstBank also implemented the programme in their markets/countries – UK, Ghana, DRC, Guinea, Sierra Leone and Senegal. In all, 25 schools benefitted with 6,000 students participating in terms of the School Engagement; 50 charities and NGOs, including Leap Africa and IWS, were partnered. Over 20,000 orphans/less privilege people including widows were reached and impacted.
No CR&S Week could take place in 2020 because of the COVID-19 pandemic and its associated restrictions on public gatherings and visits. But FirstBank did not just fold its hand and sit idly. The bank did something absolutely amazing, demonstrating uncommon solidarity with a vulnerable segment of society – children. Realising that the harsh effects of the COVID-19 crisis were borne disproportionally by children, whose education and thus future were being endangered due to the lockdown and prolonged closure of schools, FirstBank embarked on a mission to do something about it. Working with partners, such as IBM, UNESCO, Robert & John, Curious Learning and the Lagos State Government, it launched the bold and ambitious e-Learning Initiative designed to move one million children onto safe online learning platform. The Initiative was to minimise the disruption to children’s education, ensuring that they remained fully engaged during the difficult period and are not left behind by their peers across the (developed) world. There are already over 150,000 students benefitting from the e-Learning initiative in the height of the COVID-19 crises. In addition, the Bank deployed communication material to create more awareness of the SPARK Initiative and to sensitize staff, customers and the public during the unprecedented times.
What greater demonstration of kindness could there have been in 2020 given the circumstances the whole world found itself, especially vulnerable children? So there may not have been a CR&S Week in 2020 but the same kindness narrative that has characterised all activities of the various CR&S Week since 2017 clearly shone through FirstBank’s COVID-19 response, especially its e-Learning Initiative. In future, people would probably easily be forgiven if they assumed the e-Learning Initiative represented FirstBank’s CR&S Week in 2020. FirstBank has demonstrated uncommon consistency over the years to its Corporate Responsibility and Sustainability Week and the ideals it seeks to project through the platform. This has earned the bank the right to make the bold call that is the theme of this year’s CR&S Week.
The question is whether we will heed the clarion call to adopt kindness as a way of life. Will we go out there and extend kindness to others in ways that will make them realise that kindness is not just a word taken from the dictionary but an act that should always be expressed to others? Will we embrace kindness as our new way of life? Will we commit to making our everyday a Kind Comments Day, thus giving others permission and the strength to do the same? Will we Start Performing Acts of Random Kindness towards all and make them feel obligated to start acting kindly towards other people as their new lifestyle?
