Business
We’re Committed to Supporting Annual Ake Festival – Sterling Bank
Sterling Bank Plc, Nigeria’s leading financial institution, has said it is committed to supporting the annual Ake Books and Arts Festival because it sees Nigeria as part of a larger world and believes that Nigeria’s ultimate competitiveness lies in its energy.
Executive Director at Sterling, Yemi Odubiyi, who disclosed this over the weekend in a goodwill message at the opening of the 10th edition of the Ake Books and Arts Festival said Nigeria can become a leader in the world and its creative people as part of its competitiveness.
Odubiyi continued by saying that “Nigeria enjoys a comparative advantage in the arts and culture domain, and Sterling, being focused on promoting the development of human capital and improving national competitiveness, is thrilled to have been a part of the festival for the past six years and plans to continue to do so.”
Also speaking, Founder and Director of Ake Books and Arts Festival, Lola Shoneyin said, “I’m often amused when people say they can’t believe how long we’ve been doing this. I believe it has been 10 years. It has been 10 years of bringing brainwaves to life, 10 years of learning, 10 years of celebrating the incredible work that so many of you have done and are still doing and 10 years of making lifelong friends.”
She said ‘Homecoming’ was chosen as the theme of this year’s festival because, “We were going back to Abeokuta where it all began, and it was time to reconnect with our ancestral roots. The main reason ‘Homecoming’ was so perfect is that we couldn’t wait to have you back at Ake after the COVID-19 pandemic”.
She said, after two years of lockdown and online festivals, the festival is back again as participants can mingle, catch up on news and strengthen their friendships. Adding that this moment, this feeling, is what has kept them going.
The Founder said the priority has always been to ensure that guests feel at home since the very first edition of the Ake Festival. Consequently, during this year’s edition of Ake Review, guests were asked to express what home means to them, and the common responses were: A place of love; friendship and a sense of belonging, she said.
Shoneyin thanked the winner of the 2021 Nobel Prize for Literature, Professor Abdulrazaq Gurnah and his wife, Professor Denise Gurnah for honoring the invitation to attend the festival in person. She also thanked the headliner of this year’s festival, Professor Veronique Tadjo, for finding time to be a part of the festival.
Other highlights of this year’s festival include the hosting of Directors of the Global Association of Literary Festivals while many of the panel sessions explored different aspects of the theme.
Some of the sessions focused on why home exerts a pull on us, stirs our creative impulses, influences our creative expressions, evokes profound sentiments, and shapes our perception of the outside world.
Others explored the impact of conflict, capitalism, and climate disasters as well as what it means to be displaced, to live away from home and, of course, to return. The festival also featured book discussions on the idea of a home and how for some people, the home might not be a place of safety, but a place of violence, among others.
FirstBank and the Ministry of Finance Incorporated (MOFI) have concluded plans to bridge housing deficit and empower citizens with credit to own their own homes of choice in any of the 36 states of the Federation plus Federal Capital Territory (FCT). This is through the FirstBank’s MREIF mortgage loan product, which has proved to be an opportunity waiting for Nigerians to grab.
This laudable initiative considers the importance of shelter to Nigerian citizens especially low and middle income earners that have to save for years before they can build for themselves. It aims at delivering homes to those who would apply without stress, putting smiles on the faces of Nigerians now, and during retirement.
Through MREIF, FirstBank will provide eligible customers with access to loans of up to N100 million with a repayment period of up to 20 years, at an attractive interest rate of 9.75% per annum. This is less than the usual interest rate on regular loans which sit at about 27% or more today. The repayment duration of 20 years makes the loan attractive for customers without stress.
The mortgage facility is available to salary account holders, business owners, and diaspora customers.
Interested customers are required to visit the Bank’s website: https://www.firstbanknigeria.com/personal/loans/mreif-home-loan/ where they can find detailed information and begin their journey toward homeownership.
Leading financial institution, Fidelity Bank Plc, has concluded plans to host a high-level virtual webinar focused on helping public institutions to strengthen revenue systems, improve fiscal transparency, and build smarter digital structures for collections, oversight, and accountability.
This event, with the theme, Digital Fiscal Transparency: Unlocking Sub-national Opportunities for International Partners, is billed for Tuesday, March 24, 2026,
The programme is expected to bring together a cross-section of public sector leaders, development institutions, heads of parastatals and agencies, as well as financial experts, to explore practical solutions for stronger public finance management.
It is expected to offer timely insights into how modern revenue infrastructure can help institutions improve efficiency, drive accountability, and support better fiscal outcomes.
The webinar will address key issues facing many public institutions today, including revenue leakages, fragmented collection channels, weak visibility into revenue performance, poor reconciliation processes, and the growing need for more transparent and technology-driven systems.
“As public institutions seek ways to improve internally generated revenue and strengthen public trust, there has been a renewed focus on fiscal transparency.
“This is particularly important in the face of recent macro and micro economic developments with many public sector agencies under pressure to do more with limited resources,” the Divisional Head of Public Sector at Fidelity Bank, Mr Richard Madiebo, said.
“It is against this background that we have conceptualised this session with a particular focus on how digital platforms can support structured invoicing, seamless collections, payment automation, contractor disbursement transparency, real-time revenue oversight, amongst other pertinent areas of revenue mobilisation and administration in Nigeria,” he added
“The webinar forms part of our commitment to provide practical solutions that support public sector transformation and stronger sub-national development. This is in line with Fidelity Bank’s mandate to help individuals to grow, businesses to thrive, and economies to prosper,” Mr Madiebo further disclosed.
Interested participants may register at www.fidelitybank.ng/publicsectorwebinar.
Access Bank Plc and King’s Trust International (KTI) have formally signed a strategic partnership agreement to expand opportunity, entrepreneurship and sustainable livelihoods for young people across Africa.
The partnership agreement was signed by Roosevelt Ogbonna, Managing Director/Chief Executive Officer, Access Bank Plc, for Access Bank, and Will Straw, CBE, Chief Executive Officer of King’s Trust International, on behalf of KTI.
The signing ceremony was witnessed by senior leaders and representatives from both organisations, alongside distinguished guests including Aigboje Aig‑Imoukhuede, CFR, Co-Chair, King’s Trust International Africa Advisory Board and Chairman, Access Holdings Plc; Ofovwe Aig‑Imoukhuede; Co‑Chair, King’s Trust International Africa Advisory Board, and Lagos State Governor, Babajide Sanwo-Olu.
The partnership brings together King’s Trust International’s expertise in youth development with Access Bank’s pan‑African reach and long‑standing commitment to inclusive and sustainable growth. Through this collaboration, the two organisations will work to equip young people with the skills, confidence and support needed to build successful futures through employment and entrepreneurship.
Under the agreement, Access Bank will support the delivery of King’s Trust International programmes that empower young people across several African countries, supporting them to gain skills and find pathways into meaningful employment and self-employment across Africa.
Speaking at the signing, Will Straw CBE, Chief Executive Officer of King’s Trust International, said: “This partnership with Access Bank reflects a shared commitment to unlocking the potential of young people across Africa. By combining our experience in youth development with Access Bank’s scale and leadership across the continent, we can create meaningful pathways to opportunity and long‑term impact.”
Roosevelt Ogbonna, Managing Director/Chief Executive Officer of Access Bank, added: “At Access Bank, we believe that empowering young people is fundamental to Africa’s sustainable growth. Our partnership with King’s Trust International reinforces our commitment to entrepreneurship, job creation and inclusive development, while enabling us to play a purposeful role in shaping the continent’s future.”
The partnership marks a significant milestone in advancing cross‑sector collaboration to address youth unemployment, foster entrepreneurship and drive inclusive growth across Africa.
