Business
Sterling Bank Signs MoU with Optometrists on Funding, Capacity Building
Sterling Bank Plc, Nigeria’s leading commercial bank, has signed a Memorandum of Understanding (MoU) with the Nigerian Optometrist Association (NOA) to automate operations, enhance capacity and provide funding at competitive interest rates for members of the association.
Speaking at the signing ceremony of the MoU in Lagos recently, Mrs. Ibironke Akinmade, Group Head, Health Finance of Sterling Bank, said the initiative is part of the bank’s vision to be the leading bank for businesses in the health sector.
She said, “We have adopted a community approach in engagement with stakeholders in this sector. This will not only give us leverage to develop tailor-made propositions for the community, but it also creates an inroad for engagement of their members through a cluster approach.”
Akinmade said the bank recently engaged the NOA in a bid to scale on its offerings to the health sector, which include access to finance (template credit), access to digitalisation (payment platforms and Electronic Medical Records) as well as advisory services, among others.
The Head of Health Finance said the rationale behind the partnership with NOA is to further position Sterling Bank as the bank of choice for businesses in the health sector, adding that this means more business collaboration and partnership with stakeholders in the health space.
She said the bank has earmarked N10 billion for the entire health care sector in the country and would accommodate any level of funding that members of the NOA may require. Under the MoU, members of the association will be able to borrow from the Central Bank of Nigeria (CBN) intervention for the health sector at five percent as well as obtain template credit from the bank within 48 hours at competitive interest rate of 20 percent, which is below the prevailing rate in the banking industry, she said.
Since 2018, Sterling Bank has concentrated investment in five sectors of the economy under its HEART’s strategy in a bid to make impact in the country’s economic development. The five sectors in the HEART’s strategy include health, education, agriculture, renewable energy and transportation.
Also speaking, Dr. Obinna Awiaka, President of NOA, said the association wants a bank that would help its members to grow and discovered that Sterling is the only bank that has passion for the healthcare sector.
He said the relationship between members of his association and the bank will build the economy because once the healthcare industry is built the economy will also be built.
Dr. Awiaka said the NOA is satisfied with the relationship with Sterling Bank because in no distant time the bank, in conjunction with healthcare professionals, will help to develop the sector, which will translate to a better future for the country.
He said the development will make Nigerian professionals that are leaving the country in droves to return to the country to practice and this will reduce medical tourism among the country’s leaders.
He thanked Sterling Bank for coming on board and taking the bull by the horn to support the healthcare industry.
The NOA was established in 1968 and is the prime umbrella association representing over 5,000 doctors of optometry across the 36 states of the country and the Federal Capital Territory (FCT), Abuja, as well as all other optometric interest groups in Nigeria.
Business
UBA, Mastercard Partner for 75th Anniversary Card with Exclusive Benefits, Discounts
As part of activities to mark its 75th anniversary, Africa’s Global Bank, United Bank for Africa (UBA) Plc, has teamed up with Mastercard to introduce a special commemorative Debit Card.
This exclusive card offers UBA customers exciting deals and attractive discounts across multiple platforms, enhancing their banking experience in a memorable way.
The commemorative card which was unveiled at the bank’s corporate head office in Marina, Lagos, on Wednesday, is a custom-built card created with the intention of appreciating customers and other users for their loyalty throughout the seven and half decades of impactful journey.
UBA’s Group Managing Director/Chief Executive Officer, Oliver Alawuba, who spoke at the unveiling, emphasised that the card, comes loaded with irresistible benefits aimed at impressing customers, including 25% off purchases on Jumia and $75 cashback on transactions made through AliExpress.
This according to him, symbolizes the shared vision between UBA and Mastercard towards empowering Africans by enhancing customer experience through secure and convenient transactions.
He said, “This new card represents the deepening of our relationship and our shared mission to empower millions of Nigerians and Africans, providing them with access to secure transactions and new opportunities across the continent.
The GMD also disclosed the bank’s plans to unveil similar products across all its subsidiaries, adding, “We are proud of this collaboration, and we are confident that Mastercard’s role in Africa will only grow stronger in the coming years.”
The President, Africa, Mastercard, Mark Elliot, who expressed gratitude to the management of the bank on the partnership, emphasised the importance and potential of the partnership with UBA.
“We are thrilled to be partnering with UBA, which we know is one of the best banks in Africa. For us, it is a privilege to work with a partner that shares our commitment towards digitizing the continent and enhancing customer experience through secure and convenient transactions.”
Elliot who noted the immense opportunities in the African payment ecosystem, said the organisation looks forward to exploring them with UBA. “Africa is currently one of the most attractive payment markets worldwide, and it’s clear that by 2030, the continent will likely become the fastest-growing equity market,” he said.
“Meeting the UBA management is always inspiring, as we always come up with bold and strategic ideas, and today is no exception. We are excited to match our shared ambitions,” Elliot stated.
United Bank for Africa Plc is a leading Pan-African financial institution, offering banking services to more than thirty-five million customers, across 1,000 business offices and customer touch points in 20 African countries. With presence in New York, London, Paris and Dubai, UBA is connecting people and businesses across Africa through retail, commercial and corporate banking, innovative cross-border payments and remittances, trade finance and ancillary banking services.
Business
Nestlé Empowers Women Towards Self-Sufficiency, Self-Reliance, Nation Building
By Eric Elezuo
“Our goal is to ensure women feel supported, valued and respected. We have been working to balance the gender makeup of our workforce and leadership. As a result, the proportion of women in managerial positions is increasing, including in our most senior executive posts,” – Nestlé
If we have to measure the level or state Nestlé is giving women the power, authority and wherewithal to carry out their specific and basic assignments without recourse to another authority, the result will be unprecedented. Of course, this article is tailored towards that measurement, and the outcome is positively humongous. Women has found a resting beam on the efficacy and empowerment prowess of Nestlé, both as a Nigerian entity, and as a global force.
It is no secret that Nigerian women have found solace in the empowerment efforts of the dairy manufacturing giants, thereby taking charge of their own affairs, legally or otherwise towards becoming independent, self reliant, self sustaining, and of course capable of independently meeting their personal and communal responsibilities.
That is the makeup of Nigeria’s foremost food, beverage and other essential household makers, Nestlé Nigeria Limited, empowering all and sundry, with special bias to women, to becoming masters of their existence.
Charity, they say, begins at home, and so, Nestlé has anchored its placement of women on higher pedestal of empowerment and recognition from it primarily environment, as it gives women a pride of place in its employment indices. Presently, a total of 46.4% of its management positions are occupied by women. It is no wonder they won Top Employer Award in 2022 and following.
The company noted, “Our Gender Balance Acceleration Plan aims to increase the proportion of women in our top 200+ senior executive posts. We carefully monitor our succession planning to ensure that we have the right pipeline for our most critical business roles and provide career support and guidance through our Senior Leader Development Roadmap (Corporate Mentoring Program, Senior Leaders Development Assessment Center and Senior Executive Program).”
This has fulfilled one of their cardinal objectives, which is giving women the leverage to support their men, and in most cases become their own economic masters.
Nestlé’s efforts at empowering women is not limited to geo-location, and workplace excellence. Consequently, the brand on many occasions and still counting, has zeroed into communal existence, entrepreneurial capacity building, academic enablement, vocational mentorship and many more for women, giving them the needed zeal to coexist in a world erroneously described as a man’s world.
No one will forget in a hurry how during the 2014 United Nations 6th Annual Women’s Empowerment Principles event, Nestlé shared its mind bulging efforts to empower women and girls worldwide, exhibiting its works in cooperation with almost 750,000 women to provide technical and business skills, aimed at boosting education, training and opportunities, to encourage the professional development of women in the marketplace and community.
Also in August 2021, the brand launched the Nestlé Empowering Rural Women in Nigeria project, the first of its kind, with the sole aim of helping rural women retailers within the company’s value chain to scale up their businesses to increase their household incomes. The programme has assumed national prominence from Nsukka and Obolo-Afor, where it was launched, reaching instantly to the suburbs of the Federal Capital Territory and Osogbo in its first and second phases.
From the initial 150 beneficiaries, the gains have continued to multiply, integrating more Nigerian women, who are presently capable of holding their own. Nestle doesn’t settle for less in its quest to create a self reliant Nigerian woman.
The project is one of the Creating Shared Value initiatives that Nestlé deploys to help build thriving communities by improving livelihoods, and designed to equip female distributors at the end of the pyramid to scale up to three times the size of their existing businesses over three months, and to sustain the new level.
“At Nestlé, we believe that by contributing to the health and wellbeing of our communities, we create shared value for all stakeholders while contributing to the growth of our business,” the corporate headquarters was quoted as saying.
The package for beneficiaries of this programme includes grants by way of Nestlé products valued at 300% of their current monthly sales and participation in training and mentorship programs.
That’s not all, Nestlé provides each beneficiary retailer with a one-on-one mentor for guidance and consistent support. At the end of the day, the beneficiaries come out grounded and rounded, gaining the ability to master the trade and remain relevant in their businesses.
With this programme, Nestlé Nigeria has propelled 332 women entrepreneurs to amplify their businesses by an impressive 300% within the span of just one year, underscoring the company’s commitment to Creating Shared Value within its value chain, tailored to bolster financial security and enhance livelihoods, which specifically targets women within Nestlé Nigeria’s value chain.
Nestlé has also empowered women to diversify their incomes with the innovative family-centered approach, known as the Income Accelerator Programme, which is aiming to close the living income gap and reduce child labour risks by encouraging changes in behavior and rewarding positive practices.
This exemplifies Nestlé’s commitment to empowering women and households collectively, towards diversifying their incomes and building income resilience beyond every other primary endeavour.
Beyond the Nigerian shores, Nestlé also tells the story of global empowerment of women towards becoming the backbone of coffee cultivation.
The story goes, “Nescafé sources coffee from 20+ countries and recognizes the vital role that women play in growing high-quality coffee. Our sustainability initiative, the Nescafé Plan, isn’t just about producing great coffee. It’s also about empowering the communities that grow it. Supporting farmer incomes is a critical element, and, in many origins like Vietnam, the program is helping achieve yield increases up to 25%…
…”So far, Nescafé Plan 2030‘s farmer training programs have reached over 148 000 farmers in 16 countries, including… Vietnam. This knowledge empowers women to make informed decisions about their farms, improve yields, and, ultimately, grow their incomes.”
Again, Nestlé is in the forefront of empowering women farmers and advancing agriculture, and has been keenly aware of women’s vital role in Nigeria’s agriculture sector. Nestlé’s Agricultural Support Programmes have turned the challenge of limited access to resources, and climate change which threatens crop yield around, focusing specifically on women farmers by providing quality seeds, modern tools, and training in sustainable farming practices.
It has also partnered with the International Institute of Tropical Agriculture (IITA) to promote climate-smart farming techniques that empower women to combat environmental challenges and increase crop yields.
As a testament of wholesome assistance to women’s course, the Bloomberg Gender Equality Index, has recognized Nestlé for transparency in advancing women’s equality in the workplace for the fifth consecutive year.
It is believed that when the women are empowered, the community is empowered, and Nestlé takes cognizance, and is working assiduously in that direction.
Business
Dangote to IPMAN, PETROAN: Claims of Landing Fuel Cheaper Than Ours Means Importing Substandard Products
In response to allegations by the Independent Petroleum Marketers Association of Nigeria (IPMAN) and the Petroleum Retail Outlet Owners Association of Nigeria (PETROAN) about high fuel prices from the refinery, and importing cheaper fuel, Dangote Refinery has said that its ex-depot price of petrol ia pegged at N990 per litre for sale into trucks, and N960 for ships.
While defending pricing strategy, the refinery insisted that its rates are competitive and in line with international standards.
The refinery, in a statement signed by the company’s Group Chief Branding and Communications Officer, Anthony Chiejina, claimed that the assertions made by IPMAN and PETROAN that they can land cheaper petroleum products meant that they were importing substandard products into the country.
“We had lately refrained from engaging in media fights, but we are constrained to respond to the recent misinformation being circulated by IPMAN, PETROAN, and other associations.
“Both organisations claim that they can import PMS at lower prices than what is being sold by the Dangote Refinery. We benchmark our prices against international prices, and we believe our prices are competitive relative to the price of imports. If anyone claims they can land PMS at a price cheaper than what we are selling, then they are importing substandard products and conniving with international traders to dump low quality products into the country, without concern for the health of Nigerians or the longevity of their vehicles.
Unfortunately, the regulator (NMDPRA) does not even have laboratory facilities which can be used to detect substandard products when imported into the country.
“Post deregulation, NNPC set the pace by selling PMS to domestic marketers at N971 per litre for sale into ships and at N990 for sale into trucks. This set the benchmark for our pricing, and we have even gone lower to sell at N960 per litre for sale into ships while maintaining N990 per litre for sale into trucks.
“In good faith, and in the interest of the country, we commenced sales at these prices without clarity on the exchange rate that we will use to pay for the crude purchased.
“At the same time, an international trading company has recently hired a depot facility next to the Dangote Refinery, with the objective of using it to blend substandard products that will be dumped into the market to compete with Dangote Refinery’s higher quality production.
“This is detrimental to the growth of domestic refining in Nigeria. We should point out that it is not unusual for countries to protect their domestic industries in order to provide jobs and grow the economy. For example, the US and Europe have had to impose high tariffs on EVs and microchips in order to protect their domestic industries.
“While we continue with our determination to provide affordable, good quality, domestically refined petroleum product in Nigeria, we call on the public to disregard the deliberate disinformation being circulated by agents of people who prefer for us to continue to export jobs and import poverty” he stated.