By Modupe Gbadeyanka
Inspired to alleviate the sufferings of vulnerable groups in the society, while also making a difference in the fight against the coronavirus scourge, an arm of the Interswitch Group, Verve, has launched a food bank.
The Verve Food Bank Initiative would be used to provide raw foodstuff vulnerable persons and security officers working in the frontline to keep lives and property safe, especially in the wake of the recent security threats from hunger-induced riots and protests in some areas.
It was established from the N305 million raised from employees of Interswitch Group (N75 million) and the firm (N230 million).
According to a statement from the company, in order to reach out to beneficiaries, Interswitch, in partnership with the Lagos State Feeding Program (Eti-Osa Local Government Area) and the Young President Organisation (YPO), set up four Verve Food Banks and provided raw material food items for the vulnerable women, children and families, in their immediate community in Eti-Osa Local Government Area, as well as for the families of some security and police officers.
The Verve Food Bank event held on May 1, 2020, at Oko-Awo, being Interswitch’s immediate community where the company’s headquarters is located Oniru, Onikan and the Bar Beach Police Barracks.
The local government officials, along with the traditional rulers and community leaders helped in identifying the target beneficiaries.
In the Oko-Awo community, the Verve Food Bank catered to the families, artisans and security guards who are keeping lives and property safe within the vicinity.
For the Oniru community, the attention was on the less privileged and indigent families within the community.
While the Onikan Verve Food Bank catered to the artisans and menial workers within the Onikan axis, the families of the officers at the Bar Beach Police Barracks formed the last group of beneficiaries.
