ABSA Bank and its citizenship activities
Through its Citizenship programme, Absa Bank Mozambique has over the years promoted a range of initiatives whose purpose is to help create solutions to important issues in the communities where it operates. Its involvement focuses on cultural, educational, environmental and social activities, always seeking to reflect its commitment to sustainable development, contributing to the empowerment of young people with a view to a society with adequate levels of education, and creating employability and sustainable economic growth.
Xonguila had the opportunity to have a brief conversation with Tânia Oliveira, Customer Service Director at Absa Bank Mozambique, about the Bank’s involvement in this type of initiative.
What are the criteria for the bank to get involved in social and environmental initiatives?
The criteria of business ethics and of social and environmental responsibility are built into Absa’s management model. By including them, the Bank affirms that its business is managed for the purpose of creating value for customers, employees, shareholders, the environment and the community in which it operates. The Bank’s management model thus aims to ensure sustainable development, both within its own line of business and in the dimension that links sustainability with the community, more precisely Citizenship.
The fact that we are aware of the importance of our activities as factors of development and of improvement in people’s quality of life leads us to contribute actively to a variety of social activities, bearing in mind the context in which we live. The Bank seeks to focus its work on behalf of the community, always trying to make its best contribution and to cooperate with the greatest sense of social responsibility through different initiatives.
Tell us a little about these initiatives, if possible highlighting the one you consider to have been the best.
It is difficult for us to rank one project as the best or the most impactful over others, because they are all designed with the same aim: to respond to a specific challenge. All the Citizenship activities we have carried out so far have been well run and achieved the intended result, having a positive impact on the beneficiaries. However, we can highlight the blood donation campaigns, because blood is a vital resource that has been in short supply in hospitals since the outbreak of coronavirus in Mozambique and, with a painless gesture, without risk or harm to the donors’ health, helps to save lives in a simple, calm and safe way.
I can also highlight the Ready to Work programme, a training initiative created by the Bank and aimed at young people aged 18 to 35. Since its creation, more than 6,300 people have been trained, helping them to develop professional, financial, business and interpersonal skills.
Also of great importance were the donation of 36 tonnes of nationally produced bar soap to the Ministry of Health (MISAU) for distribution to the most needy communities across the country; the support for victims of armed violence in Cabo Delgado; the installation of hygiene facilities to prevent COVID-19 in primary schools in Maputo province; the donation of capulana masks to the Bank’s employees, in an initiative that also benefited the designers hired to produce them; and the vaccination campaign for the Bank’s employees.
These were initiatives that had a great impact in the media. What was the public’s feedback?
Our aim is always to have a positive impact on people’s lives, and the results are plain to see, with massive participation in events, both in person and virtual, such as the blood donation campaigns and our marathon, which has now become a virtual run and continues to promote sport for a healthy life, especially during the adverse and challenging time brought about by the COVID-19 pandemic. This is a sign that the public is with us and values our initiatives, giving them the importance we want them to have.
And in terms of internal engagement? What was the strategy for involving employees?
Establishing strong internal communication. It is on the basis of clear, direct and honest communication that we have involved our employees in all our activities.
We also seek to energise and promote moments of focus on particular themes in order to increase employee engagement, accelerate positive results and centralise actions in one area or team, generating integration between initiatives and assessing the results collectively.
In short, the Bank’s strategy has been to promote a culture of social responsibility, developing actions with the aim of contributing, directly or indirectly, to the country’s social development, seeking to engage with both the external community and the internal community (employees). This is reflected in our value proposition for employees, which includes a wide range of benefits intended to improve their well-being and that of their families, encouraging them to seek a balance between professional and personal life.
