SUSTAINABILITY OVERVIEW

Access Bank Plc, reputed as Africa’s Bank of best practice has over the years consistently demonstrated a sincere commitment to sustainability principles across its various operations. The Bank has taken a bolder step to further integrate sustainability practices into its core business functions.

Sustainability best practice has become integral to our strategic business objectives. It has been incorporated into our business conduct; performance assessments of all our employees; and is reflected in the policies that govern behaviour and ethical conduct across the Bank. Our values underpin this strategic approach to sustainability and reflect our desire to preserve the future for all our stakeholders.

Our corporate responsibility practice encompasses a range of issues including: employment standards; customer satisfaction and relations; product and services supplier relations and environmental sustainability.  Corporate governance and ethical behaviour forms the baseline of all we do. They tie CSR directly to the Bank’s senior management and Board of Directors who bear responsibility for overall business strategy, practices and policies.

Our sustainability practices further extends to the various communities wherein we operate. We understand the basic challenges faced by various communities where we have an impact and we are positioned to contribute our quota in adding value to the communities where we operate, enhancing their lives and leaving them better equipped to succeed themselves. We have broadened the scope of our community development initiatives and our focus areas are:

• Arts
• Education
• Environment
• Health
• Sports

The scope of our Community development initiatives is however not limited to these five focus areas. Access Bank’s CSR activities also address important social issues that do not necessarily fall within these areas.  We leverage partnerships around skills, efforts and infrastructure and report on our activities.

OUR APPROACH

Corporate Social Responsibility at Access Bank is about understanding the issues that matter most to our stakeholders and addressing these issues through our business processes, people and activities.

As a “Bank of Best Practice”, we have a well-designed and integrated CSR strategy, with our top management setting the tone. We identify with sustainable initiatives that ensure benefits for our stakeholders and we are driven by impact potential.  

We also have a sustained and disciplined focus on issues directly related to the core of our business and context of operation. We express our commitment to creating sustainable value for our shareholders while maintaining high standards of integrity in our methods and practices of doing business through:

• Conducting an environmental and social impact assessment of potentially damaging projects and the ability of the borrower to manage its impact, as part of our normal credit and risk procedures
• Ensuring that our products and services are value-adding and accessible
• Engaging only in fair practices and promoting diversity while ensuring rewarding career opportunities
• Combating corruption and bribery in all our countries of operation, especially geographical areas prone to corruption
• Positively contributing to the economic development of the countries where we operate.

We have identified and effectively instituted essential building blocks to create an enduring framework for corporate decision making, brand image and employee recruitment and retention.