As a responsible Nigerian company, Stanbic IBTC Holdings PLC continually seeks to contribute positively to its host communities through Corporate Social Investment (CSI) initiatives which have lasting and meaningful impacts in the areas of health, education and economic empowerment. This Nigerian financial institution seeks to establish community-based partnerships, while encouraging its employees to participate voluntarily in life-changing initiatives.
A leading Nigerian end-to-end financial services provider, Stanbic IBTC has never shied away from providing relief, succour and happiness to beneficiaries of its CSI initiatives. These initiatives are built on pillars – Health, Education and Economic Empowerment – and provide a platform through which Stanbic IBTC has undertaken several laudable projects across the country.
Education is generally seen as the bedrock of any society and an investment in knowledge pays the best dividends. Through the Stanbic IBTC Adopt-a-School Project, the Group has continued to provide qualitative educational development. Under this project which kicked off in Lagos, the group in collaboration with its staff, literally ‘adopts a school’, while basic facilities aimed at improving the quality of education are provided and in some cases, upgraded.
Furthermore, as a research-encouraging organisation, Stanbic IBTC Holdings through its subsidiary, Stanbic IBTC Bank PLC, has contributed towards the intellectual and socio-economic development of the society. This is evident in its donations toward the rehabilitation of the livestock production facility of the University of Ibadan, which is hoped will help increase livestock production in the university community and the society at large.
Other educational support initiatives which the group has embarked on, include: provision of an Information and Communications Technology (ICT) Centre at the Ladipo Primary School in Mushin, and construction and donation of a block of modern toilet facilities at Abaranje Nursery & Primary School, Idimu, both in Lagos.
Access to capital remains a condition plaguing the African continent and Nigeria in particular. Small and Medium-Scale Enterprises (SMEs) thrive on access to capital and business tools. With economic empowerment being a key pillar of its CSI, Stanbic IBTC has remained the leading Nigerian financial institution, bridging this gap through the provision of Business Edge training facilities to 20 female SME customers. In partnership with the International Finance Corporation (IFC), a member of the World Bank Group, the training aims at improving the management skills of female business owners. Through this knowledge-sharing opportunity, participants are offered first-hand business knowledge.
With the increasing call for women empowerment in Africa, Stanbic IBTC Holdings PLC, through the Women in Successful Careers (WISCAR), provides career mentorship to women in Africa. Through this annual leadership and empowerment conference, recommendations arrived at during the conference, form part of economic policies for growth and national development.
It is often said that a fit body and a calm mind makes a house full of love because these things cannot be bought. With health being another of its key CSI pillars, Stanbic IBTC Holdings PLC has remained at the vanguard of ensuring its workforce remain healthy.
The Stanbic IBTC Health and Wellness Week remains a beacon for how a Nigerian company ensures that its employees and by extension, citizens, should consciously pay attention to their health. This week-long event gives tips to Stanbic IBTC’s over 5,000 Nigerian employees on how they can take better care of their health.
Through the #Together4ALimb Initiative, Stanbic IBTC has championed the provision of artificial limbs to children without limbs. With a prosthetic limb costing about N1.5 million or more, Stanbic IBTC has over the years undertaken this project, wiping away the tears of the benefiting families. In addition to the provision of these artificial limbs to beneficiaries, Stanbic IBTC also awards these beneficiaries educational trust funds, aimed at ensuring that they have access to quality education.
This project, which targets victims of the Boko Haram insurgency in the North East as well as other children in the country, was started in 2015, and has so far seen over 60 children benefit from it. The 8-kilometre charity walk, tagged “Together4ALimb Walk”, has also helped in raising public awareness on the plight of children with limb challenges in the society.
With Nigeria’s tertiary health system in a near comatose state, Stanbic IBTC has also remained at the forefront of championing better health systems in the country. The Group has undertaken numerous medical interventionist initiatives which include: the renovation of the Accident and Emergency Ward of the Lagos University Teaching Hospital (LUTH); the donation of medical equipment to Yaba Maternity Centre, Harvey Road Yaba; donation of medical equipment to Ifako Ijaiye General Hospital, Ijaiye; and the donation of medical equipment and supplies to Eti- Osa Local Govt Primary Healthcare Centre, among others.
Malaria remains a dangerous disease ravaging the continent and Nigeria, as it is identified as the leading cause of infant mortality in the country, claiming the life of one child every two minutes. Studies have shown that more than 250,000 children die from malaria every year, with children under five being the biggest victims. Also, the Nigeria Malaria Fact sheet estimates that 97% of Nigeria’s population is at risk of malaria, with an estimated 100 million malaria cases and over 300,000 deaths per year in Nigeria, when compared with 215,000 deaths per year from HIV/AIDS.
It is worthy of note that while the federal and state governments have made giant strides towards reducing malaria casualties in Nigeria, corporate bodies such as Stanbic IBTC have also lent their support and assistance towards this cause. An example is the provision of treated mosquito nets to residents of Tarkwa Bay and Shaga communities in Lagos.
As a Nigerian financial institution which has showed its love for the Nigerian child, Stanbic IBTC Holdings PLC through its Stanbic IBTC Vehicle and Asset Finance (VAF) unit has embarked on several charity projects including covering corrective surgery costs both at home and abroad. This has changed the stories of hundreds of children, giving them hope and a future.
With all its lofty achievements, Stanbic IBTC remains unrelenting, breaking the barriers of societal, health and financial empowerment boundaries. Indeed, it has proven to be a Proudly Nigerian company, with love for Nigeria.
Business Post Contributor