Photo caption: Patrick Akinwuntan, MD/CEO, Ecobank Nigeria (2nd left), receiving a gift pack from Bayo Olugbemi, the President/Chairman of Council of the Chartered Institute of Bankers of Nigeria (2nd right); when council members of the institute visited his office on Friday in Lagos. With them are Dele Alabi, MD, ETI Speciliased Finance Company/ National Treasurer CIBN (left); and Professor Pius Olarewanju, 2nd Vice President, CIBN (right).
The Managing Director, Ecobank Nigeria, Patrick Akinwuntan last week received the President and Council members of the Chartered Institute of Bankers of Nigeria (CIBN), the umbrella body of all bank workers in the country, on a courtesy visit to his office in Lagos.
During the occasion, he pledged greater support and collaboration with the institute, assuring that the bank continues contributing to efforts to make the institute top class and remain relevant globally.
According to Akinwuntan, “for us at Ecobank, we are extremely proud of CIBN’s efforts at ensuring public discourse on the future of the Nigerian economy; this is not in isolation of relevant issues within the banking and finance industry such as ethics, professionalism, accountability, transparency, good corporate governance and harnessing the opportunities technology has provided in the new world order. Be assured of our maximum support and collaboration at all times”.
The Managing Director also identified with ongoing efforts by the CIBN to raise the bar in the area of competency and capacity building in the industry, stressing that with sound professional conduct, every banker would be held in high esteem.
Ecobank, he stressed, is working assiduously to ensure majority of its staff become members of the institute, adding that the bank will also provide more mentees and mentors in its mentorship programme.
“We are working on a medium to long term programme to ensure all Ecobank Nigeria staff become chartered members of the institute. At Ecobank, we take human capacity development very seriously. Some of our staff that wrote the last examinations are now chartered members of the Institute,” he stressed.
Speaking earlier, the President/Chairman, CIBN, Bayo Olugbemi commended the bank’s consistent support to enable the institute realize its mandate of determining the standards of knowledge and skills for persons seeking to become professional bankers.
In particular, he conveyed the gratitude of the institute to the bank for the various local and international recognitions and awards it garnered over the years, noting Akinwuntan’s immense contributions to its growth.
He said the visit was to share with Ecobank Nigeria’s management, the institute’s strategic initiatives with the acronym A-TEAM, which translates into “A- Accelerated Development, T- Technology and Digital Enhancement, E- Engagement for Growth, A- Accountability and Transparent Leadership and M- Membership Drive for Value.”
He solicited Ecobank’s support for, among others, the proposed amendment of the CIBN Act No. 5 of 2007; ensure its staff mandatorily register with the institute and become chartered bankers; besides the bank also participating in the institute’s internship scheme by accepting students of linkage institutions who are members of CIBN as interns.
“We also solicit Ecobank to enlist in our Endowment/Prize Awards in any subject of interest in its name, or personal capacity; donate towards the renovation of the Abuja Bankers’ House; support the establishment of banking museum by donating artifacts and other relevant materials; participate actively in training programmes of the Institute, regular impact assessments and satisfaction surveys for the institute’s respective initiatives, which are targeted at improving quality service delivery and to identify gaps where necessary.”
