Yemisi Izuora
First Bank of Nigeria Limited is commemorating the second edition of its Corporate Responsibility and Sustainability (CR&S) Week scheduled for June 19 – 23, 2018.
The event themed ‘Touching Lives; You First’ would offer FirstBank employees the opportunity to give their time and resources in the service of humanity.
The week-long event which is being commemorated across its business communities in Nigeria, United Kingdom, Democratic Republic of Congo, Ghana, The Gambia, Guinea, Sierra-Leone and Senegal is a reflection of the Bank’s brand promise to always put stakeholder needs first, while it reinforces the Bank’s role in driving sustainable development in the communities where it operates.
The CR&S Week would witness the culmination and consolidation of the Bank’s interventions in social responsibility, promoting random acts of kinds across 800 communities to reignite acts of kindness in our society. The events are tailored towards re-orientating the society along the right values; encouraging the citizenry to intentionally create positive impact in their immediate environment.
Major Highlights of the 2018 commemoration include:
Promoting Acts of Random Kindness in over 800 Business Communities– This initiative launched in 2017 as Staff Promoting Acts of Random Kindness has been expanded to give opportunities to everyone who wants to participate.
Consequently, it has been tagged ‘Start Promoting Acts of Random Kindness’ (SPARK) and a Giving platform has been put in place to encourage all interested parties to donate to humanitarian causes. All stakeholders are encouraged to nominate people they believe are deserving of kindness.
Nominations can be sent to spark@firstbanknigeria.com with supporting reasons in not more than 100 words; entries close on June 23, 2018.
Giving and Visits to Orphanages/Less Privileged Homes Across Sub-Saharan Africa and United Kingdom: FirstBank staff would drive welfare through visits to homes of the less privileged and elderly across the Bank’s footprints in Sub-saharan Africa and the United Kingdom to present the items which have been procured based on a prior needs assessment at the chosen locations.
Career counseling for over 3000 students: Executive Management and staff will deliver impactful career counseling sessions with secondary school students across the regions to inculcate financial literacy and inclusion in young students.
Provision of Vision Screening and Eye Glasses for 2000 People: The Bank is partnering with VisionSpring to provide vision screening and affordable eye glasses for consumers earning less than $4 per day. This initiative is structured around three social impact themes: See to Earn, See to Learn, and See to be Safe to impact the lifestyles of their communities.
Empowerment for over 500 Widows: As part of the week’s activities, FirstBank will also commemorate the International Widows Day (IWD) on June 23, 2018 and is partnering with the International Women’s Society (IWS) to empower women, especially widows that will be present at an event organised to commemorate the IWD.
FirstBank’s CR&S Week is the first of its kind in the Financial Service industry in Nigeria and it is tailored to spotlight the Bank’s corporate citizenship interventions to drive positive impact across various communities all in one week.
The Bank is encouraging people everywhere to step out of their comfort zones, perform a random act of kindness, post a picture and tag FirstBank on social media using the hash tag #FirstBankCRSWeek on Facebook – facebook.com/
Speaking on the initiative, the MD/CEO, First Bank of Nigeria Limited, Dr. Adesola Adeduntan stated that the 2018 Corporate Responsibility and Sustainability week will amplify the Bank’s Employee Giving and Volunteering scheme as we all collaborate across our business communities to create sustainable impact, touch lives and make our societies a better place to live.