Staff Reporter
Windhoek-Standard Bank this week launched its Corporate Social Investment (CSI) report, which highlights the strides the bank has made by contributing one percent of its profit after tax to various CSI initiatives.
Through its CSI the bank invests in areas such as education, health, poverty alleviation, entrepreneurship development and environmental issues. Standard Bank invested about N$4 million in CSI intiatives in 2016.
This week, Standard Bank’s acting head of marketing, Sigrid Tjijorokisa, and Standard Bank’s chairperson of the CSI Board, Dr Ndapewa Hamunime, launched the bank’s CSI Report detailing CSI initiatives over the last year.
During the launch, Tjijorokisa reiterated that the bank aims to create meaningful and lasting mutual benefits for the communities it serves and is passionate about contributing to the improvement of the socio-economic circumstances of the communities in which it operates.
Dr Hamunime said she was pleased to see that the bank had such a great impact on the lives of the less privileged.
“International author Phillip Kotler once said ‘A good company offers excellent products and services. A great company offers excellent products and services but also strives to make the world a better place.’
“Reaching out to the socially disadvantaged, empowering the less fortunate and enabling people to help others is what CSI is all about… For us at Standard Bank, CSI has always been the lens through which our business ensures long-term value creation and sustainability.
“It talks to not only improving the lives of our communities but that of our shareholders and instils the culture of volunteerism amongst our employees,” Hamunime remarked.
She stressed that businesses cannot be successful when the society around them fails, so CSI is not just a particular programme – it is what businesses do every day to maximise positive impact and minimise negative impact in society.
“What is still on everyone’s lips today is our flagship CSI community fundraising initiative, Buy-A-Brick, which has turned out to be a noble success by providing decent homes to the value of N$1.4 million dollars to the Shack Dwellers Federation members in Rehoboth in 2016, and just recently another N$2 million set to provide inhabitants of Windhoek’s Havana and Okahandja Park informal settlements, as well as in the towns of Berseba and Otjinene in the //Karas and Omaheke regions, respectively,” Hamunime said.
Hamunime added that the 40-page CSI Report was the bank’s way of moving Namibian communities forward, “because after all Namibia is our home, we drive her growth.”
She used the platform to launch the bank latest CSI initiative, the Circle of Friends project, in collaboration with the Cancer Association of Namibia (CAN), under the stewardship of CAN’s chief executive officer, Rolf Hansen.
The newly formed Circle of Hope was formed by the recently opened Family Support Centre. Along with the Patient Financial Assistance programme, The Circle of Hope aims to provide psychosocial support programmes to aid cancer patients and their families.
“We value the unwavering support and dedication in the fight against cancer that we have received from Standard Bank. The Circle of Hope will aid in providing training for volunteers to support newly diagnosed patients and their families; improve the quality of life of patents and their families; provide support to caregivers, survivors and volunteers; reduce cancer mortality and promote public awareness on cancer,” Hansen explained.
He further noted that although only a minority of patients are at risk of psychopathology morbidity, sub-clinical levels of distress have a negative impact on them and their families, so psycho-social interventions are needed.