Ecobank Academy, IFRC partner to train senior leaders in 45 African countries
Leading pan African financial giant, Ecobank Transnational Incorporated (ETI) Wednesday, flagged off the training 150 senior leaders of the International Federation of Red Cross and Red Crescent Societies (IFRC) from 45 African countries at the prestigious Ecobank Academy.
The three day training is part of drills to raise their leadership skills with regard to helping the communities they serve.
Ecobank and the IFRC signed a partnership agreement in November 2018 to work closely together to empower local communities to cope with disasters more efficiently. In addition to providing training, Ecobank is leveraging its digital banking and QR code capabilities to boost IFRC’s fundraising. Initiatives on behalf of IFRC National Societies by Ecobank’s affiliate companies have seen the setting up of digital membership records and enrolment processes, Ecobank staff volunteering to help in communities facing crisis, and the receipt of First Aid training from IFRC volunteers.
Business Hilights gathered that the Ecobank Academy delivers world-class management development courses and is the first pan-African corporate university as well as being one of the largest capability development centres in Africa.
The aim of the course is ‘Building African National Society leadership to be proud of’ and it will include training on leadership skills, leading National Societies effectively, partnership management, governance and responsibility, risk management and controls, sustainability, integrity and transparency, youth and gender engagement and the opportunities of digitization.
Simon Rey, Group Head, Ecobank Academy and Carl Manlan, COO of Ecobank Foundation, said: “The Ecobank Academy and Ecobank Foundation have worked closely with the IFRC to devise training courses for their national leaders covering key leadership skills such as governance, accountability and sustainability. We have built a strong relationship with the IFRC and it is hugely gratifying that we can play a role in their impactful work supporting suffering communities.”
In his remarks, Dr. Fatoumata Nafo-Traoré, IFRC’s Regional Director for Africa, commented: “At the IFRC we recognise that leadership is about solving problems. The training that our African leaders will receive from the Ecobank Academy will successfully position them to devise solutions to the challenges they face. Ecobank’s support in this, and in many other ways, is proving to be an invaluable asset in our work to address health, disasters and crises affecting communities throughout the African continent.”
