Our Community
Child Education, Literacy and Lifelong Learning
To improve learning and the health status of Lagos pupils, we partnered with the Lagos State Government to feed 11,836 pupils from 33 schools in Lagos Island during the five-day pilot school feeding initiative called ‘Snacks For Thought.’, The week- long pilot scheme was aimed to assist pupils improve their academic performance and boost school enrolment in the state.
We partnered with the Pearls Africa Foundation, a social enterprise, to empower girls from underserved communities. 30 young schoolgirls between the ages of 9 and 18, drawn from various secondary schools within the Makoko and Yaba axis in Lagos benefited from the programme. The training programme provided the opportunity for the girls to rise above the challenges that hinder the girl-child from excelling in the fields of science, technology, engineering and mathematics while helping to guarantee future success, job security and equal opportunities with peers irrespective of race and gender.
We partnered with the Book Buzz foundation for the execution of the Ake Arts and Book Festival, this is an annual literary and cultural festival in Africa focused on promoting, developing, and celebrating creativity on the African continent. The main aims of the Book Buzz Foundation are to promote literacy, especially amongst children of school-going age and to develop reading tools and reading spaces. The festival hosted panel discussions, workshops, book chats, plays, poetry, events, concerts, and performances. It boasted of over one hundred writers, poets, dancers, artists, filmmakers and thinkers talking about Africa, on African soil.
The Teaching Network Foundation (TTNF) is a platform to facilitate teachers’ continuous professional development through collaboration and learning from each other. We partnered with the foundation for the execution of all their quarterly face to face sessions and the training of over 5,000 teachers directly and indirectly. Other benefits include capacity building and personal development for the teachers that facilitated sessions and immense positive impact on over 50,000 students taught by these teachers.
Based on our partnership with Slum Art foundation, 196 children in Ijora-Badia, an underserved high-density settlement in Lagos, joined other children from around the world to campaign against the scourge of modern slavery. The project saw the kids in the poor communities exposed to purposeful creativity and exposure to art. #MyFreedomDay, is part of the CNN Freedom Project aimed at harnessing the determination of young people around the world to put an end to slavery once and for all. This campaign advocates the protection of the rights of every child and is one of the ways to draw attention to the new trend of slavery devouring the dignity of children.
Our partnership with Lafarge Africa National Literacy competition sought to contribute to the strengthening of public education to bridge the literacy gap in Nigeria. The Competition has grown to become a national initiative positively impacting children and teachers across the country. Over 700,000 primary school pupils in 1,665 schools across 544 local government areas (LGAs) have been impacted since inception. Promoting literacy and education over the years has proven to be an effective approach to alleviating poverty and improving the well-being of the society. This initiative is an intervention in Nigeria’s education sector in line with the United Nations Sustainable Development Goal Four which focuses on ensuring inclusive quality education and learning opportunities for all. It is positioned to help in achieving equality and fostering sustainable development across Nigeria.
- Financial literacy trainings were held across the country, including the adoption of a school as part of the Central Bank of Nigeria (CBN) Financial Literacy Day celebration. This is organized annually to promote financial literacy and aid students’ understanding of the concept. Staff volunteers also played a significant role under the Employee Volunteer Programme. We engaged over 62,000 students during the 2019 Financial Literacy Day and Global Money Week. We have published and distributed over 10,000 copies of 2 books on the subject, My Little Money Book and FUND$, to over 1,000 primary and secondary schools nationwide. Altogether, over 200,000 students around Nigeria were exposed to financial literacy because of the Bank’s efforts.
- On a compassionate note, Sterling Bank representatives visited the Internally Displaced Persons camp in Jos, Plateau state on May 27 to mark Children’s Day. Among the donations made were financial literacy books for the children.
- ‘Snacks for Thought’ School Feeding Programme
- Girls Coding Programme
- Ake Arts and Book Festival
- The Teaching Network Foundation Partnership
- CNN #MyFreedomDay Art Project
- The Lafarge Africa National Literacy Competition Partnership
- Financial Literacy training
- Adopt-A-School Initiative
- Spelling Bee Competitions
- Open Andela Lagos Study Program
- Parenting Workshop
We have adopted several schools including Ireti Junior High School, Falomo, Lagos, an all-girls’ institution, in support of the Central Bank of Nigeria’s initiative for mentoring of students of public schools in Nigeria. We donated a home economics laboratory to the school while a robotics workshop was also organized for the students to prepare them for the workplace of the future. The model leverages artificial intelligence to deliver efficient results with scale and minimal errors and is critical for the future of work.
Spelling Bee competitions encourage young people to expand their vocabulary, communication skills and self-confidence, by stimulating curiosity about words, their roots, meaning and usage. We support organizers of different Spelling Bee competitions around Nigeria. One of which is the Logophile Spelling Bee Competition organized across three grades for children under ten years old. The Grade One level is for children in Primary 1 and 2. Grade Two is for children in Primary 3 and 4. Grade 3 is for older children preparing for the Common Entrance examinations in Primary 5 and 6. We are proud to be associated with a truly catch ’em young initiative like this. Versatility with words, the love of reading, and a good memory, all of which the competition engenders will stand the participants in good stead throughout their lives no matter the courses of study they pick or careers they choose later in life.
Open Andela Lagos Study Program gives young people interested in becoming software developers a chance to be part of the popular Andela Home Study Program over the 11-week course duration. Over five hundred participants benefited from the project equipped with the problem-solving and coding knowhow to provide innovative solutions for societal challenges or seek gainful employment including freelance opportunities. The Open Andela Lagos Study Program was executed by Sterling Bank in partnership with Audax Code, Andela, a software developer outplacement agency, 9Mobile and Lagos State Government Ministry of Wealth Creation and Employment. As an active supporter of SMEs and entrepreneurship through credit and banking services, we welcomed the chance to collaborate with the creators of this laudable programme in fostering the next generation of tech service providers and business owners.
Amid the hustle and bustle of big city living, many parents feel overwhelmed by the demands of parenting. With 70% of our workforce having children under 16, we understand very well the issues many of our employees must deal with on the home front. Their success or not in that area can determine their productivity on the job. To address this challenge, we partnered with the Caleb Group of Schools to execute the first ever Parenting Workshop series as we saw its benefits immediately. The Workshop had two aims: to help parents and guardians deal with topical issues that affect the upbringing of their wards in the 21st century and maximize the potential of their wards. These issues are treated vis-à-vis the practical day-to-day realities of life in Nigeria. Over 500 participants attended the session with immense positive feedback.
To improve learning and the health status of Lagos pupils, we partnered with the Lagos State Government to feed 11,836 pupils from 33 schools in Lagos Island during the five-day pilot school feeding initiative called ‘Snacks For Thought.’, The week- long pilot scheme was aimed to assist pupils improve their academic performance and boost school enrolment in the state.
We partnered with the Pearls Africa Foundation, a social enterprise, to empower girls from underserved communities. 30 young schoolgirls between the ages of 9 and 18, drawn from various secondary schools within the Makoko and Yaba axis in Lagos benefited from the programme. The training programme provided the opportunity for the girls to rise above the challenges that hinder the girl-child from excelling in the fields of science, technology, engineering and mathematics while helping to guarantee future success, job security and equal opportunities with peers irrespective of race and gender.
We partnered with the Book Buzz foundation for the execution of the Ake Arts and Book Festival, this is an annual literary and cultural festival in Africa focused on promoting, developing, and celebrating creativity on the African continent. The main aims of the Book Buzz Foundation are to promote literacy, especially amongst children of school-going age and to develop reading tools and reading spaces. The festival hosted panel discussions, workshops, book chats, plays, poetry, events, concerts, and performances. It boasted of over one hundred writers, poets, dancers, artists, filmmakers and thinkers talking about Africa, on African soil.
The Teaching Network Foundation (TTNF) is a platform to facilitate teachers’ continuous professional development through collaboration and learning from each other. We partnered with the foundation for the execution of all their quarterly face to face sessions and the training of over 5,000 teachers directly and indirectly. Other benefits include capacity building and personal development for the teachers that facilitated sessions and immense positive impact on over 50,000 students taught by these teachers.
Based on our partnership with Slum Art foundation, 196 children in Ijora-Badia, an underserved high-density settlement in Lagos, joined other children from around the world to campaign against the scourge of modern slavery. The project saw the kids in the poor communities exposed to purposeful creativity and exposure to art. #MyFreedomDay, is part of the CNN Freedom Project aimed at harnessing the determination of young people around the world to put an end to slavery once and for all. This campaign advocates the protection of the rights of every child and is one of the ways to draw attention to the new trend of slavery devouring the dignity of children.
Our partnership with Lafarge Africa National Literacy competition sought to contribute to the strengthening of public education to bridge the literacy gap in Nigeria. The Competition has grown to become a national initiative positively impacting children and teachers across the country. Over 700,000 primary school pupils in 1,665 schools across 544 local government areas (LGAs) have been impacted since inception. Promoting literacy and education over the years has proven to be an effective approach to alleviating poverty and improving the well-being of the society. This initiative is an intervention in Nigeria’s education sector in line with the United Nations Sustainable Development Goal Four which focuses on ensuring inclusive quality education and learning opportunities for all. It is positioned to help in achieving equality and fostering sustainable development across Nigeria.
- Financial literacy trainings were held across the country, including the adoption of a school as part of the Central Bank of Nigeria (CBN) Financial Literacy Day celebration. This is organized annually to promote financial literacy and aid students’ understanding of the concept. Staff volunteers also played a significant role under the Employee Volunteer Programme. We engaged over 62,000 students during the 2019 Financial Literacy Day and Global Money Week. We have published and distributed over 10,000 copies of 2 books on the subject, My Little Money Book and FUND$, to over 1,000 primary and secondary schools nationwide. Altogether, over 200,000 students around Nigeria were exposed to financial literacy because of the Bank’s efforts.
- On a compassionate note, Sterling Bank representatives visited the Internally Displaced Persons camp in Jos, Plateau state on May 27 to mark Children’s Day. Among the donations made were financial literacy books for the children.
We have adopted several schools including Ireti Junior High School, Falomo, Lagos, an all-girls’ institution, in support of the Central Bank of Nigeria’s initiative for mentoring of students of public schools in Nigeria. We donated a home economics laboratory to the school while a robotics workshop was also organized for the students to prepare them for the workplace of the future. The model leverages artificial intelligence to deliver efficient results with scale and minimal errors and is critical for the future of work.
Spelling Bee competitions encourage young people to expand their vocabulary, communication skills and self-confidence, by stimulating curiosity about words, their roots, meaning and usage. We support organizers of different Spelling Bee competitions around Nigeria. One of which is the Logophile Spelling Bee Competition organized across three grades for children under ten years old. The Grade One level is for children in Primary 1 and 2. Grade Two is for children in Primary 3 and 4. Grade 3 is for older children preparing for the Common Entrance examinations in Primary 5 and 6. We are proud to be associated with a truly catch ’em young initiative like this. Versatility with words, the love of reading, and a good memory, all of which the competition engenders will stand the participants in good stead throughout their lives no matter the courses of study they pick or careers they choose later in life.
Open Andela Lagos Study Program gives young people interested in becoming software developers a chance to be part of the popular Andela Home Study Program over the 11-week course duration. Over five hundred participants benefited from the project equipped with the problem-solving and coding knowhow to provide innovative solutions for societal challenges or seek gainful employment including freelance opportunities. The Open Andela Lagos Study Program was executed by Sterling Bank in partnership with Audax Code, Andela, a software developer outplacement agency, 9Mobile and Lagos State Government Ministry of Wealth Creation and Employment. As an active supporter of SMEs and entrepreneurship through credit and banking services, we welcomed the chance to collaborate with the creators of this laudable programme in fostering the next generation of tech service providers and business owners.
Amid the hustle and bustle of big city living, many parents feel overwhelmed by the demands of parenting. With 70% of our workforce having children under 16, we understand very well the issues many of our employees must deal with on the home front. Their success or not in that area can determine their productivity on the job. To address this challenge, we partnered with the Caleb Group of Schools to execute the first ever Parenting Workshop series as we saw its benefits immediately. The Workshop had two aims: to help parents and guardians deal with topical issues that affect the upbringing of their wards in the 21st century and maximize the potential of their wards. These issues are treated vis-à-vis the practical day-to-day realities of life in Nigeria. Over 500 participants attended the session with immense positive feedback.
Gender Empowerment
In line with our passion to reduce maternal mortality and save lives, we supported the Managing Medical and Obstetric Emergencies and Trauma (mMOET) Course organized by Advanced Life Support Group (ALSG) held for the first time in West Africa. The first two mMOET courses were organised in partnership with the department of Obstetrics and Gynaecology of the College of Medicine, University of Lagos/Lagos University Teaching Hospital (LUTH), Idi-Araba, Lagos, in collaboration with facilitators from the University of Leicester, UK and the Maternal and Reproductive Health Research Collective, Lagos Nigeria.
We partnered with the LEAH Foundation to produce a movie titled ‘Diamonds in the Sky’ to raise awareness and educate Nigerians on the deadly diseases – breast and cervical cancer. The movie was produced by Femi Adebayo, a renown Nollywood actor and producer. It was directed by award-winning director, Kunle Afolayan and starred leading actors like Joke Silva, Toyin Aimakhu, Ali Nuhu, Bimbo Akintola among others. The movie has screened in different parts of the country to educate women on breast and cervical cancer while entertaining them. The education equips them for any eventualities for themselves and their family members ensuring that they do not need to lose their lives to the dreaded disease. It is currently on Netflix with potential to reach many more women across the globe.
Women in Management, Business and Public Service or WIMBIZ is a prominent not-for-profit organization that attracts women drawn from various professions, entrepreneurship, and arts. It strives to serve as a catalyst for the elevation of the status and influence of women and their contribution to nation building. Most of its members have attended tertiary institutions, and many hold postgraduate degrees and professional qualifications. WIMBIZ is unique for its strong mentorship program, and support networks across generations. We provided a N100 million facility to WIMBIZ members to boost their business growth and help them build scale.
In a bid to provide a bespoke offering for all our female customers and clients given their unique needs, a well-rounded proposition was established which boasts of a bouquet of life impacting solutions catering to the health, finances, social and networking needs of the Nigerian woman among so many other benefits. The platform seeks to support women from diverse economic backgrounds by offering discount on loan offerings, free health checks, internship opportunities, customized debit card with a multi-offering discount provision on various services, empowerment workshops/academy, lifestyle nuggets, business needs, personal support etc. We have also invested in:
- Training over 5,000 women on financial literacy which was held in Kaduna and Bayelsa, while we empowered them with affordable financing
- Provided capacity building to access funds via our Market Women Quick Cash Initiative to empower women in Kaduna State.
- Mentoring programmes bespoke for both genders (male & female) at all levels
- Free medical checks for female employees during the International Women’s Day celebration while we flagged-off a month-long Breast Cancer Awareness campaign.
- Donated over three million naira to Channel for Widow Relief Initiative NGO, based in Ibadan, Oyo State for empowering the women in the scheme.
- Supported a “Mamalette” project – centered around nursing mothers and pregnant women
In recognition of our efforts so far in this light, we were awarded the Bank of The Year in Women Economic Empowerment at the 1st edition of the 2017 Nigeria Sustainable Banking Awards organized by the Central Bank of Nigeria (CBN).
In line with our passion to reduce maternal mortality and save lives, we supported the Managing Medical and Obstetric Emergencies and Trauma (mMOET) Course organized by Advanced Life Support Group (ALSG) held for the first time in West Africa. The first two mMOET courses were organised in partnership with the department of Obstetrics and Gynaecology of the College of Medicine, University of Lagos/Lagos University Teaching Hospital (LUTH), Idi-Araba, Lagos, in collaboration with facilitators from the University of Leicester, UK and the Maternal and Reproductive Health Research Collective, Lagos Nigeria.
We partnered with the LEAH Foundation to produce a movie titled ‘Diamonds in the Sky’ to raise awareness and educate Nigerians on the deadly diseases – breast and cervical cancer. The movie was produced by Femi Adebayo, a renown Nollywood actor and producer. It was directed by award-winning director, Kunle Afolayan and starred leading actors like Joke Silva, Toyin Aimakhu, Ali Nuhu, Bimbo Akintola among others. The movie has screened in different parts of the country to educate women on breast and cervical cancer while entertaining them. The education equips them for any eventualities for themselves and their family members ensuring that they do not need to lose their lives to the dreaded disease. It is currently on Netflix with potential to reach many more women across the globe.
Women in Management, Business and Public Service or WIMBIZ is a prominent not-for-profit organization that attracts women drawn from various professions, entrepreneurship, and arts. It strives to serve as a catalyst for the elevation of the status and influence of women and their contribution to nation building. Most of its members have attended tertiary institutions, and many hold postgraduate degrees and professional qualifications. WIMBIZ is unique for its strong mentorship program, and support networks across generations. We provided a N100 million facility to WIMBIZ members to boost their business growth and help them build scale.
In a bid to provide a bespoke offering for all our female customers and clients given their unique needs, a well-rounded proposition was established which boasts of a bouquet of life impacting solutions catering to the health, finances, social and networking needs of the Nigerian woman among so many other benefits. The platform seeks to support women from diverse economic backgrounds by offering discount on loan offerings, free health checks, internship opportunities, customized debit card with a multi-offering discount provision on various services, empowerment workshops/academy, lifestyle nuggets, business needs, personal support etc. We have also invested in:
- Training over 5,000 women on financial literacy which was held in Kaduna and Bayelsa, while we empowered them with affordable financing
- Provided capacity building to access funds via our Market Women Quick Cash Initiative to empower women in Kaduna State.
- Mentoring programmes bespoke for both genders (male & female) at all levels
- Free medical checks for female employees during the International Women’s Day celebration while we flagged-off a month-long Breast Cancer Awareness campaign.
- Donated over three million naira to Channel for Widow Relief Initiative NGO, based in Ibadan, Oyo State for empowering the women in the scheme.
- Supported a “Mamalette” project – centered around nursing mothers and pregnant women
In recognition of our efforts so far in this light, we were awarded the Bank of The Year in Women Economic Empowerment at the 1st edition of the 2017 Nigeria Sustainable Banking Awards organized by the Central Bank of Nigeria (CBN).
Food Security
To drive capacity building and enable the Agriculture industry value chain, we invested in the Agriculture Summit Africa which was attended by players in the value chain across the continent. Delegates came from 30 countries and invaluable content was shared on the various developments in the Agriculture sector with analysis of the implications of the emergence of the African Continental Free Trade Area (AfCFTA). AfCTFA is a free trade area created by the African Continental Free Trade Agreement established to create a single continent-wide market. It will accelerate intra-African trade and boost Africa’s trading position in the global market by strengthening Africa’s common voice and policy space in global trade negotiations. Over 2,000 delegates benefited from this event which held at the Transcorp Hilton Hotel, Abuja while over 1,400 industry players benefited from the online streaming of the event.
Farmers Radio is the only agricultural – related radio show in Nigeria sponsored by a commercial bank. It is our flagship empowerment and engagement platform for small and medium scale farmers across the country. It lasts for about 30 minutes with resource persons from research institutes and Development Financial Institutions to discuss technicalities, innovation and available opportunities in agribusiness finance as well as dos and don’ts of modernized farming techniques. This radio show in aired in the 6 geo-political zones of the country and more than a million farmers are exposed to this knowledge to improve food production and financing in the agricultural sector weekly.
- We partnered with givefood.ng with a goal to feed 1million less privileged people across the country weekly to help them survive and thrive during the lockdown due to the pandemic. This was done with a coalition of private and public sector partners. givefood.ng, is an emergency food relief platform committed to delivering 1 million meals a week to vulnerable Nigerians.
- We also partnered with the Women in Business and Management to feed 10,000 vulnerable families in Lagos state in the wake of the COVI-D19 lockdown.
To drive capacity building and enable the Agriculture industry value chain, we invested in the Agriculture Summit Africa which was attended by players in the value chain across the continent. Delegates came from 30 countries and invaluable content was shared on the various developments in the Agriculture sector with analysis of the implications of the emergence of the African Continental Free Trade Area (AfCFTA). AfCTFA is a free trade area created by the African Continental Free Trade Agreement established to create a single continent-wide market. It will accelerate intra-African trade and boost Africa’s trading position in the global market by strengthening Africa’s common voice and policy space in global trade negotiations. Over 2,000 delegates benefited from this event which held at the Transcorp Hilton Hotel, Abuja while over 1,400 industry players benefited from the online streaming of the event.
Farmers Radio is the only agricultural – related radio show in Nigeria sponsored by a commercial bank. It is our flagship empowerment and engagement platform for small and medium scale farmers across the country. It lasts for about 30 minutes with resource persons from research institutes and Development Financial Institutions to discuss technicalities, innovation and available opportunities in agribusiness finance as well as dos and don’ts of modernized farming techniques. This radio show in aired in the 6 geo-political zones of the country and more than a million farmers are exposed to this knowledge to improve food production and financing in the agricultural sector weekly.
- We partnered with givefood.ng with a goal to feed 1million less privileged people across the country weekly to help them survive and thrive during the lockdown due to the pandemic. This was done with a coalition of private and public sector partners. givefood.ng, is an emergency food relief platform committed to delivering 1 million meals a week to vulnerable Nigerians.
- We also partnered with the Women in Business and Management to feed 10,000 vulnerable families in Lagos state in the wake of the COVI-D19 lockdown.
To drive capacity building and enable the Agriculture industry value chain, we invested in the Agriculture Summit Africa which was attended by players in the value chain across the continent. Delegates came from 30 countries and invaluable content was shared on the various developments in the Agriculture sector with analysis of the implications of the emergence of the African Continental Free Trade Area (AfCFTA). AfCTFA is a free trade area created by the African Continental Free Trade Agreement established to create a single continent-wide market. It will accelerate intra-African trade and boost Africa’s trading position in the global market by strengthening Africa’s common voice and policy space in global trade negotiations. Over 2,000 delegates benefited from this event which held at the Transcorp Hilton Hotel, Abuja while over 1,400 industry players benefited from the online streaming of the event.
Farmers Radio is the only agricultural – related radio show in Nigeria sponsored by a commercial bank. It is our flagship empowerment and engagement platform for small and medium scale farmers across the country. It lasts for about 30 minutes with resource persons from research institutes and Development Financial Institutions to discuss technicalities, innovation and available opportunities in agribusiness finance as well as dos and don’ts of modernized farming techniques. This radio show in aired in the 6 geo-political zones of the country and more than a million farmers are exposed to this knowledge to improve food production and financing in the agricultural sector weekly.
- We partnered with givefood.ng with a goal to feed 1million less privileged people across the country weekly to help them survive and thrive during the lockdown due to the pandemic. This was done with a coalition of private and public sector partners. givefood.ng, is an emergency food relief platform committed to delivering 1 million meals a week to vulnerable Nigerians.
- We also partnered with the Women in Business and Management to feed 10,000 vulnerable families in Lagos state in the wake of the COVI-D19 lockdown.
Healthcare and Wellbeing
We partnered with the Malaria, Child, Maternal Mortality Eradication (MACMME) project to produce a movie titled ‘ANAVE’ in an effort to bring greater awareness to the plight of the less privileged Nigerian child and mother inflicted by the malaria scourge. The project was inspired by the statistics which showed that malaria is responsible for the death of an average of 300,000 children and 11 per cent of all maternal deaths each year in Nigeria. The MACMME project is an advocacy project which seeks to reduce the gruesome rates of maternal and child mortality attributable to preventable causes such as malaria, homelessness, hunger, and opportunistic diseases in Nigeria. ANAVE paraded celebrated artistes and actors such as Omawumi Megbele, Aituaje Iruobe popularly known as Waje, Shawn Faqua, Seun Ajayi, Rita Edwards and many others. The vision of the MACMME project is to establish viable solutions for improved quality of life for the underprivileged Nigerian such as homeless shelters with access to basic healthcare, rehabilitation, and empowerment programmes.
Healthcare professionals risk their lives while treating infected persons during the pandemic. In most of Nigeria, they earn just N5,000 (appr. $13) as hazard allowance. To support them, we partnered with the crowdfunding platform, Giving.ng to raise N1billion for the Health Workers Fund. The Health Workers Fund caters to the payment of hazard allowances for the health workers at the frontline taking care of patients infected with Coronavirus (COVID-19). The Bank seeded the Fund with N25million. It enables corporations, institutions and individuals in Nigeria and the diaspora support healthcare workers directly and reward them for their sacrifice and bravery.
We supported the country’s first COVID-19 drive-thru mass mobile testing center with an initial investment of N10million. This was done in partnership with Life Bank and the Nigerian Institute of Medical Research (NIMR) to make testing easier and faster. This has reduced the burden of testing on the Nigerian Center of Disease Control (NCDC) and the risk of contagion of the disease due to ignorance of infected persons. The investment is planned to be scaled up as the project expands to different locations across the country.
To strengthen public health infrastructure, we donated N50million for the equipping of the COVID-19 Isolation ward at the National Orthopedic Hospital, Igbobi, Lagos in partnership with Fate foundation philanthropy to cater to the increasing COVID-19 confirmed cases. We will continue scaling efforts to mitigate the negative impact of the pandemic and promote a healthy society for the country.
In the wake of the pandemic, we partnered with health startup, Tremendoc to provide free healthcare services to Nigerians across the country. Tremendoc, is a ‘phone-a-doctor’ app that helps you consult a physician for any ailment without leaving the comfort of your home. It was an investment for Nigerians to enable them practice social distancing with access to the best medical attention possible at their convenience. This was to reduce the risk of infections, the risk of death from the virus, especially for people with underlying health conditions and to limit fatalities during the pandemic from other diseases apart from the virus.
We executed a region-wide intensive awareness communication campaign to sensitize Nigerians in the North on the safety requirements to reduce the spread of the virus in the North in partnership with the Citizens Action Group. This was against the backdrop of rising cases of infections in the North. The Citizens Action Group is a private sector collective comprising of private citizens working in support of the Federal Government, the Nigerian Center for Disease Control (NCDC) and the Federal Ministry of Health to raise urgent resources to complement efforts by the government in response to combating Covid-19 in Nigeria. The partnership of the collective of Northern Emirs and the Sultan of Sokoto was also secured for the campaign to aid effectiveness.
- The sum of N250 million was donated to support the Federal Government’s effort to curtail the spread of the novel Coronavirus (COVID-19) in the country as part of the Nigerian Private Sector Coalition Against COVD19.
Healthcare professionals risk their lives while treating infected persons during the pandemic. In most of Nigeria, they earn just N5,000 (appr. $13) as hazard allowance. To support them, we partnered with the crowdfunding platform, Giving.ng to raise N1billion for the Health Workers Fund. The Health Workers Fund caters to the payment of hazard allowances for the health workers at the frontline taking care of patients infected with Coronavirus (COVID-19). The Bank seeded the Fund with N25million. It enables corporations, institutions and individuals in Nigeria and the diaspora support healthcare workers directly and reward them for their sacrifice and bravery.
We supported the country’s first COVID-19 drive-thru mass mobile testing center with an initial investment of N10million. This was done in partnership with Life Bank and the Nigerian Institute of Medical Research (NIMR) to make testing easier and faster. This has reduced the burden of testing on the Nigerian Center of Disease Control (NCDC) and the risk of contagion of the disease due to ignorance of infected persons. The investment is planned to be scaled up as the project expands to different locations across the country.
To strengthen public health infrastructure, we donated N50million for the equipping of the COVID-19 Isolation ward at the National Orthopedic Hospital, Igbobi, Lagos in partnership with Fate foundation philanthropy to cater to the increasing COVID-19 confirmed cases. We will continue scaling efforts to mitigate the negative impact of the pandemic and promote a healthy society for the country.
In the wake of the pandemic, we partnered with health startup, Tremendoc to provide free healthcare services to Nigerians across the country. Tremendoc, is a ‘phone-a-doctor’ app that helps you consult a physician for any ailment without leaving the comfort of your home. It was an investment for Nigerians to enable them practice social distancing with access to the best medical attention possible at their convenience. This was to reduce the risk of infections, the risk of death from the virus, especially for people with underlying health conditions and to limit fatalities during the pandemic from other diseases apart from the virus.
We executed a region-wide intensive awareness communication campaign to sensitize Nigerians in the North on the safety requirements to reduce the spread of the virus in the North in partnership with the Citizens Action Group. This was against the backdrop of rising cases of infections in the North. The Citizens Action Group is a private sector collective comprising of private citizens working in support of the Federal Government, the Nigerian Center for Disease Control (NCDC) and the Federal Ministry of Health to raise urgent resources to complement efforts by the government in response to combating Covid-19 in Nigeria. The partnership of the collective of Northern Emirs and the Sultan of Sokoto was also secured for the campaign to aid effectiveness.
The sum of N250 million was donated to support the Federal Government’s effort to curtail the spread of the novel Coronavirus (COVID-19) in the country as part of the Nigerian Private Sector Coalition Against COVD19.
Inclusion, Sustainable Economic Growth and Poverty Eradication
We have taken a leadership position with reference to financial inclusion in the country. We have established our financial inclusion policy and are one of the foremost banks to launch the Agent Banking model targeted at the unbanked/under banked individuals. We launched the Sterling Agent Banking Edu-Finance Scheme to ease the burden of about 70 percent of Nigerians who receive wages weekly and are unable to make upfront payments of school fees on behalf of their children. We provided loans of between N25,000 and N100,000 per term to pay school fees while also providing funding for the schools to run their businesses so that they could afford operating expenses such as paying staff salaries and have enough savings to venture into capital projects such as buildings and acquisition of equipment. Over 8,000 students, 5,800 parents and 4300 schools pan Nigeria have benefited from the project. We also won the Banking in the Community Award at the Bank of the Year 2019 Awards by The Banker in London, United Kingdom due to this investment.
We made substantial donations to help alleviate the sufferings of Internally Displaced Persons in Nasarawa State, Northern Nigeria. In partnership with crowdfunding platform, Giving.Ng, the Bank, her employees and well-meaning Nigerians donated to families at the Kutara Tataradna Internally Displaced Persons (IDP) camp in Nasarawa state. The donations were made during the yuletide season. Over 240 individual and corporate donors contributed to the project. Other corporate partners included 7Up Bottling company, Eat Drink Festival and Ella’s Food Bank.
In view of the fact that small businesses are critical to the growth of any economy, we have continually invested in building the capacity of SMEs pan-Nigeria. We launched the Medium, Small and Micro Enterprises (MSME) Academy with 3 clear objectives. First, to train and mentor MSMEs on how to prepare and execute viable business plans. Second, to guide them on how to access finance from both local and international financial investors. Third, to coach them on entrepreneurial and managerial skills. Some of the Academies ended in fairs providing access to markets for the businesses. A bespoke session was also held for the Nigerian Association of Small Medium Enterprises (NASME). Other sessions have held in the following cities – Onitsha in Anambra state, Kaduna in Kaduna state, Ibadan in Oyo state, Port Harcourt in Rivers state, and Lagos, the African economic hub. In total, over a thousand firms have attended the different sessions and events. The Academy was organized in partnership with an International Finance Corporation-certified trainer.
We partnered with iCreate Africa to execute a Skills festival across three (3) regions in the country – South West, North and South East. The festival focuses on raising the profile and recognition of artisans by rebranding and projecting the value of skills in the mainstream while preparing youths for the future. 14 categories were addressed and they include barbing, hairdressing, make-up, robotics, carpentry, tiling, automobile technology, leatherworks, and a host of other categories. The competition is an innovative strategy designed to promote under celebrated professions amongst youth to curb unemployment and boost the economy. The winners also participated in the World Skills competition. So far over 1,000 youths have benefited directly and indirectly from the capacity building and talent recognition initiative.
The Pitch Nigeria, a Business idea competition for startups and existing businesses in Nigeria aims to find passionate entrepreneurs with interesting and exciting business ideas, provide a platform for them to pitch for financial support and provide necessary business support to enable them thrive. The ‘Pitch Nigeria’ draws attention to the small and medium-scale enterprises (SMEs) in Nigeria’s economy and their drive to solving problems and creating wealth. Sectors focused on were Health, Education, Agribusiness, Renewable Energy, Transportation, Fashion, Hospitality, Information and Communication Technology. So far over 3,000 participants enrolled for the competition powered by SME Toolkit Challenge to develop and strengthen the entrepreneurial and managerial capabilities of entrepreneurs in Nigeria. The best 200 pitches were selected and further drilled down to 50. High-intensity workshops, seminars, roundtables, and coaching sessions were executed at the boot camp to accelerate the development of the key skills they have identified to enable their businesses to succeed. The eventual winners got support to the tune of ten million naira (N10million) in funding and business support.
We supported the Nigerian Economic Summit Group (NESG) start-up competition in partnership with Venture Garden Group and its startup investment/acceleration arm, GreenHouse Capital to fund early stage ventures with grants up to fifteen thousand dollars ($15,000). This collaborative effort sought to empower Micro, Small and Medium Enterprises (MSMEs) with opportunity to pitch their start-ups, collaborate and interact with individuals and organisationsorganizations interested in promoting entrepreneurship and meet experienced investors while obtaining great feedback and possibly capital. 40% of the companies that made the final list have women in leadership positions.
We partnered with the Nigerian International TV Summit/ Nigerian International Film Summit to empower players across the value chain of the Nigerian Film and TV industry while celebrating ingenious creativity by the sector. NIFS/NITV is an international business summit focusing on various aspects of the Film and TV content business within and outside Nigeria. This includes but not limited to content production, channel carriage, licensing and distribution, project commissioning, dubbing and post-production as well as innovative content delivery solutions in a digital era. It brings together top local and international TV industry executives involved in the content business and creates the needed platform to encourage cross-cultural productions and TV content business between Nigeria and other African countries especially with the French speaking countries in Africa as well as other English speaking countries both within and outside of Africa. In recognition of the positive image the industry has accorded Nigeria across the globe and the need for added support, the Bank invested in the sector’s value chain to educate and empower industry players.
We have taken a leadership position with reference to financial inclusion in the country. We have established our financial inclusion policy and are one of the foremost banks to launch the Agent Banking model targeted at the unbanked/under banked individuals. We launched the Sterling Agent Banking Edu-Finance Scheme to ease the burden of about 70 percent of Nigerians who receive wages weekly and are unable to make upfront payments of school fees on behalf of their children. We provided loans of between N25,000 and N100,000 per term to pay school fees while also providing funding for the schools to run their businesses so that they could afford operating expenses such as paying staff salaries and have enough savings to venture into capital projects such as buildings and acquisition of equipment. Over 8,000 students, 5,800 parents and 4300 schools pan Nigeria have benefited from the project. We also won the Banking in the Community Award at the Bank of the Year 2019 Awards by The Banker in London, United Kingdom due to this investment.
We made substantial donations to help alleviate the sufferings of Internally Displaced Persons in Nasarawa State, Northern Nigeria. In partnership with crowdfunding platform, Giving.Ng, the Bank, her employees and well-meaning Nigerians donated to families at the Kutara Tataradna Internally Displaced Persons (IDP) camp in Nasarawa state. The donations were made during the yuletide season. Over 240 individual and corporate donors contributed to the project. Other corporate partners included 7Up Bottling company, Eat Drink Festival and Ella’s Food Bank.
In view of the fact that small businesses are critical to the growth of any economy, we have continually invested in building the capacity of SMEs pan-Nigeria. We launched the Medium, Small and Micro Enterprises (MSME) Academy with 3 clear objectives. First, to train and mentor MSMEs on how to prepare and execute viable business plans. Second, to guide them on how to access finance from both local and international financial investors. Third, to coach them on entrepreneurial and managerial skills. Some of the Academies ended in fairs providing access to markets for the businesses. A bespoke session was also held for the Nigerian Association of Small Medium Enterprises (NASME). Other sessions have held in the following cities – Onitsha in Anambra state, Kaduna in Kaduna state, Ibadan in Oyo state, Port Harcourt in Rivers state, and Lagos, the African economic hub. In total, over a thousand firms have attended the different sessions and events. The Academy was organized in partnership with an International Finance Corporation-certified trainer.
We partnered with iCreate Africa to execute a Skills festival across three (3) regions in the country – South West, North and South East. The festival focuses on raising the profile and recognition of artisans by rebranding and projecting the value of skills in the mainstream while preparing youths for the future. 14 categories were addressed and they include barbing, hairdressing, make-up, robotics, carpentry, tiling, automobile technology, leatherworks, and a host of other categories. The competition is an innovative strategy designed to promote under celebrated professions amongst youth to curb unemployment and boost the economy. The winners also participated in the World Skills competition. So far over 1,000 youths have benefited directly and indirectly from the capacity building and talent recognition initiative.
The Pitch Nigeria, a Business idea competition for startups and existing businesses in Nigeria aims to find passionate entrepreneurs with interesting and exciting business ideas, provide a platform for them to pitch for financial support and provide necessary business support to enable them thrive. The ‘Pitch Nigeria’ draws attention to the small and medium-scale enterprises (SMEs) in Nigeria’s economy and their drive to solving problems and creating wealth. Sectors focused on were Health, Education, Agribusiness, Renewable Energy, Transportation, Fashion, Hospitality, Information and Communication Technology. So far over 3,000 participants enrolled for the competition powered by SME Toolkit Challenge to develop and strengthen the entrepreneurial and managerial capabilities of entrepreneurs in Nigeria. The best 200 pitches were selected and further drilled down to 50. High-intensity workshops, seminars, roundtables, and coaching sessions were executed at the boot camp to accelerate the development of the key skills they have identified to enable their businesses to succeed. The eventual winners got support to the tune of ten million naira (N10million) in funding and business support.
We supported the Nigerian Economic Summit Group (NESG) start-up competition in partnership with Venture Garden Group and its startup investment/acceleration arm, GreenHouse Capital to fund early stage ventures with grants up to fifteen thousand dollars ($15,000). This collaborative effort sought to empower Micro, Small and Medium Enterprises (MSMEs) with opportunity to pitch their start-ups, collaborate and interact with individuals and organisationsorganizations interested in promoting entrepreneurship and meet experienced investors while obtaining great feedback and possibly capital. 40% of the companies that made the final list have women in leadership positions.
We partnered with the Nigerian International TV Summit/ Nigerian International Film Summit to empower players across the value chain of the Nigerian Film and TV industry while celebrating ingenious creativity by the sector. NIFS/NITV is an international business summit focusing on various aspects of the Film and TV content business within and outside Nigeria. This includes but not limited to content production, channel carriage, licensing and distribution, project commissioning, dubbing and post-production as well as innovative content delivery solutions in a digital era. It brings together top local and international TV industry executives involved in the content business and creates the needed platform to encourage cross-cultural productions and TV content business between Nigeria and other African countries especially with the French speaking countries in Africa as well as other English speaking countries both within and outside of Africa. In recognition of the positive image the industry has accorded Nigeria across the globe and the need for added support, the Bank invested in the sector’s value chain to educate and empower industry players.
