Diamond Bank Donates Equipment to Lagos Government

Diamond Bank Plc, a leading retail Bank in Nigeria, in fulfilment of its Employee Volunteering Programme (EVP),  donated equipment to Lagos State Government to support the State’s skills acquisition programme aimed at providing skills for millions of unemployed and under- employed youths in the State. The Lagos State government has twenty Skills Acquisition Centres across the State.

The Employee Volunteering Programme is a Corporate Social Responsibility initiative whereby Diamond Bank staff offer free financial literacy training to artisans, in keeping with the Bank’s policy of building capacity within the Micro, Small and Medium Scale Enterprise (MSMES) sector.

Receiving the Diamond Bank team, Adejoke Orelope-Adefulire, Deputy Governor of Lagos State, noted that the skills acquisition programme is in line with the government’s efforts at empowering the youths and bringing them into the economic production chain.

Recounting her experience in the hands of street miscreants, popularly known as “area boys”, she said: “Following my experience with area boys many years ago, I developed a deep interest in the issue and started the first Skills Acquisition Centre as Commissioner for Women Affairs in 2004. Today, we have 20 centres spread across the State attracting students’ enrollment from various parts of the country including neighbouring countries like Togo and Benin Republic.” While appreciating the Bank for the donation, she pointed that the Lagos State government is interested in public-private partnerships aimed at moving the State forward.

“By this kind gesture, Diamond Bank has contributed to making the state more secure because happy and empowered youths contribute to the growth of society, so lives and businesses are more secure and profitable” she added.