Ethics & Society

We are sensitive to the challenges of our environment specifically in the areas of poverty, disease, corruption and human capacity development.

We have made great strides in the past decades to consistently factor social and environmental concerns into our business operations.

With respect to poverty alleviation, in particular, we continue to invest in and grow our microfinance capacity to help grow micro-entrepreneurs.

Our training and development programmes and institutional standards are aimed at developing a human capital base that will make tangible contributions to the institution as well as society, while also promoting customer service and ethical standards. Every employee is required to operate to a minimum ethical standard as embodied in our Code of Business Ethics.

In line with managing concerns about global warming, Ecobank has taken steps to reduce its carbon footprint. Our investment in technology also allows us to hold virtual meetings, thereby reducing the need for physical travel.

Supporting economic development and growth in Africa

We recorded gross revenues (excluding interest expenses) of US$697 million in 2007. In generating these revenues, we created loans and provided financial assistance of over US$3 billion to governments and government agencies, companies, small and medium scale enterprises, microfinance institutions and individuals. To support the economic growth and development in Africa we paid taxes in excess of US$51 million to various governments in countries in which we operate.

Ecobank has an Environmental and Sustainability unit within its Group Risk Management department. This unit has the primary responsibility for all environmental and sustainability management, including environmental and social risks, sustainability business development, adoption of green initiatives, energy conservation and carbon footprint management. Ecobank has also set up a Group Sustainability Committee to provide overall coordination for its sustainability programme and policy within the Group. It continues to implement its environmental sustainability initiatives in earnest.

Ecobank remains committed to taking bold steps to reduce the carbon footprints of its operations. It does this by ensuring that its supply and procurement; building designs and energy usage are compatible with the acceptable emissions standards set by the authorities in countries across the bank’s geographic coverage. Thus, in line with this commitment, the bank has defined a set of key performance indicators for measuring its internal carbon footprint management. These are:

• Energy (Electricity bill)
• Office waste
• Paper use
• Travel
• Company vehicle fleet

Ecobank participation in the global sustainability initiative is further aimed at leveraging best practices to improve an in-house programme for the implementation of sustainable development. In this regard, the bank is a signatory to the United Nations Environment Programme (UNEP) Finance Initiative and the UN Global Compact. The bank has adopted the International Finance Corporation (IFC) Performance Standards as well as the Equator Principles.

Ecobank is an active member of the United Nations Environment Programme Finance Initiative (UNEPFI) and its Africa Task Force. Ecobank has been participating in the UNEPFI Annual General Meeting and Roundtable Conference. The bank is working with the UNEPFI ATF Secretariat in countries where Ecobank operates to win more members through workshop and awareness creations.

Also, in developing the capacity needed for environmental and social analysis, the Ecobank Environmental and Social risk management team has been participating in an online training course on Environmental and Social Risk Analysis. Th UNEP FI organised this online course to provide in-depth personalised training and facilitate debates. Ecobank participants were involved in a range of activities, from simulating implementation of environmental and social policy guidelines and case studies analyses, to carrying out exercises based on their own experience with clients’ environmental and social impacts.

In November 2011, Ecobank Transnational Incorporated became a signatory to the Ten Principles of the United Nations Global Compact in the areas of Human Rights, Labour, Environment and Anti-Corruption. Since it became a member, the bank has been reaffirming its support to these principles and submitted its maiden annual report ‘Communication on Progress.’

The report outlined the Ecobank’s actions and steps being taken towards continually improving the integration of the Global Compact and its principles into the bank’s business strategies and practices. Ecobank reassured the UN Global Compact secretariat of its commitment towards partnership with other stakeholders in realising its vision and in promoting private sector participation for the achievement of a genuine economic and social transformation in Africa. It looks forward to complementing the implementation of new development initiatives, including the UN Sustainable Development Goals (SDGs) and the Paris Declaration on Climate Change, mainly from its core competence areas of banking and finance.

Ecobank is fully compliant with its membership obligation to the UNGC and has submitted the Communication on Progress, which is the annual report of Ecobank’s activities toward implementation of these principles. At the country level, Ecobank is an active member of the UNGC Local Networks in Ghana.

In line with the IFC contractual obligations, Ecobank has satisfied all the conditions related to Environmental & Sustainability management. Relevant Ecobank subsidiaries with direct IFC investments have also completed and submitted their Annual Environmental Performance Review report. Ecobank has furthermore adopted and commenced implementation of the Environmental and Social Management System. Under the overall guidance of the Group Head, Risk Management, Ecobank has customised the Environmetal and Social Manaement System that goes beyond written policies into action. This includes, for instance, allocating human and financial resources for implementation and training employees.

Ecobank adopted the Equator Principles (EP) in 2012 and has modified the Principles application to help improve the internal policy governing projects financing and corporate loans where the proceeds will ultimately be used for project with a total cost of USD10million or more. Hence, Ecobank has demonstrated its commitment to environmental and social performance beyond the Equator Principles recommendations.

Ecobank seeks to harness the power of its human capital in its mission of building a world class bank and contributing to the development of Africa

Ecobank seeks to harness the power of its human capital in its mission to build a world class bank and contribute to the development of Africa.

We believe our people are our greatest resource and we invest in attracting, retaining and developing our people. More than 8,000 people from 29 African nationalities work together in local and virtual teams to deliver value to our customers. We offer our staff state of the art training and development opportunities and to provide an empowering and motivating work environment. We appreciate the contribution made by every member of our staff and and we seek to provide them with the necessary tools and resources, including the appropriate technological platform; to expand their career prospects.

With over 11,000 employees working across 950 branches, offices and kiosks and 764 alliance locations throughout Africa, we estimate that we directly support over 40,000 people. Through our contractors, suppliers and distributors, we believe we directly and indirectly provide employment to a much larger number of people across Africa.

Learning and development

We devote up to 5% of payroll cost to training and development opportunities. A key strategic intent and indicator for training and development is that all staff must have at least an average of 40 hours of training and coaching every year.

Leadership building

Over 90% of our senior managers and country heads were developed internally through a structured process that identifies, develops, advances, and retains current and future leaders. Our leadership programs offer project and secondment assignments, job shadowing, coaching and seminars. We support human capital development in Africa through graduate and internship opportunities. In 2007 over 850 undergraduates had the opportunity to see first hand what it is like to work in Ecobank. Lasting from 3 to 12 months, our internships programme offers participants a chance to prepare for the future of working in Africa.

Diversity and inclusion

Diversity and inclusion are an integral part of our culture and strategy. Ecobank, by virtue of its geographical spread, is one of the most diversified groups in Africa, in terms of the composition of its staff. Ecobank also has a policy of ensuring diversity in its employee talent pool, without compromising the quality of its staff. Regular reports are presented and monitored to ensure adherence to this policy. Our employees come from diverse nationalities of which 29 nationalities are from Africa. We communicate in English, French and Portuguese. Our workforce is 44% female and our management team is 31% female.

We believe this multicultural workforce provides Ecobank an edge in responding to the varied needs of our customers and makes the group a more interesting place to work for.

Health and work/ life balance

Our health care programme focuses on the total wellness of employees, through the provision of full medical cover and opportunities to pursue a healthy lifestyle within the community.

Microfinance and Poverty Alleviation

Ecobank is committed to providing the underbanked and the unbanked poor with access to finance.

The bank focuses on being in the forefront of providing financial services to poor and low-income men and women who are economically active in micro and small enterprises in Africa. This sector is very important to the growth and development of Africa, and is often a bed-rock of national economies, as it provides a livelihood for millions of Africans who lack access to financial services.

Ecobank has a dual objective in serving this market. The market is largely un-tapped and has tremendous potential, presenting a growth opportunity for the group. It also provides a significant platform to empower African entrepreneurs to upscale their operations, expand income generation and pull themselves out of poverty.

To pursue the vision, the bank and other partners launched one of the biggest microfinance banks in Nigeria in 2007, and launched another bank in Ghana in 2008.

To complement the direct retail approach, Ecobank also acts as banker to microfinance institutions in the countries in which it operates. The bank presently supports over 250 microfinance institutions with wholesale loans and other products in a manner that enhances their capacity to expand delivery of services to their customers.

The prospects remain very bright for the microfinance sector, which is arguably larger than the traditional banking sector.

Sponsorship for sporting events in Africa

Ecobank has a long-standing commitment to supporting sports, and provides sponsorship for various sporting events in Africa. In 2007, Ecobank offered customers an opportunity to attend the African Cup of Nations finals in Accra. It also sponsored the national football team of the Republic of Benin to the Cup championships. The bank has also sponsored the West Africa Economic Monetary Union (UEMOA) football tournament in Ouagadougou. Other sponsorship support includes partnerships with the African Athletics Confederation, for one of its programmes in particular - the African Cycling Championship, as well as some elements of the International Football Federation (FIFA) World Cup in South Africa in 2010, which also allowed the bank to promote its Rapidtransfer Remittance product.

This was followed up in 2012 with the sponsorship of the first Africa-focused broadcast feed of the International Amateur Athletics Federation (IAAF) Olympics broadcast feed, under the auspices of the African Union of Broadcasters.

Sustainability is at the core of Ecobank’s mission and vision of building a world-class pan-African bank that contributes to the integration and socio-economic development of the continent. We take the view that the long-term success of Ecobank is intertwined with the sustainable development of the economies, societies and environment that we operate in.

Ecobank’s strategy, policies, risk management, compliance and operational practices have been aligned with embedding economic, social and environmental issues that are material to our business of delivering services to customers and sustainable value to shareholders. This alignment is ensured by our governance structure. It, includes the Ecobank Group Board of Directors, boards of directors in countries where we operate, our Group Executive Committee and Country Executive Management Committee. While the Group provides strategic direction and defines policy framework governing sustainability matters that are material to its business, its business groups implement specific issues of sustainability.

Initiatives under implementatino include:

• Sustainable banking and profitable financial inclusion, including energy efficiency, agribusiness, SME, micro-finance
• Sustainable development policy advocacy
• Green initiatives
• Carbon footprint management

Ecobank has an established procedure that allows the public to make enquiries or express concerns related to the bank’s environmental and social policy and/or projects that it finances. The bank responds to such inquiries in a timely manner. Ecobank’s Corporate Communications Department manages the process of receiving, reviewing, and responding to communications from external stakeholders. Click here to view more.