It was a beautiful sight to behold as the Christmas and Yuletide season came to life at the 2022 Zenith Bank Christmas Light-Up Ceremony, held at the Ajose Adeogun Street Roundabout, Victoria Island, Lagos, on Saturday, November 19, 2022. The official lighting ceremony, conducted by the Group Managing Director/CEO of Zenith Bank Plc, Mr. Ebenezer Onyeagwu, supported by the Executive Management, was witnessed by many staff and customers of the bank, with others practically participating.
With the theme “Let There Be Light”, this year marks the 16th edition of the Light-up Ceremony at the Ajose Adeogun Roundabout. The Light-Up event is the bank’s annual Corporate Social Responsibility (CSR) initiative to usher in the yuletide season by beautifying Ajose Adeogun Street – home to Zenith Bank’s Corporate Headquarters – recognized as an iconic place, attracts people from all walks of life to visit with their families and friends to take photos and make videos of the beautiful scenery, especially at night and enjoy the ambiance of road and time.
Speaking during the ceremony, Onyeagwu expressed his joy at heralding the yuletide season of 2022 through the iconic Ajose Adeogun Street lit up. In his words, “Today is a special day. It is special in the sense that we will light the Christmas lights and activate the Christmas spirit, which we usually have every year. It is also special in the sense that we are honored and happy to be among you the wife of our Founder and Chairman, Mrs. Kay Ovia”.
He praised Quantum Markets, the company responsible for the annual decorations, for the unique, creative and extremely beautiful work they did. According to him, “if you look at the Christmas set-up that we have every year, it looks completely different, and there is no repetition of themes. And when we think we’ve seen it all, by the time a new one arrives, it’s something completely different and much more. As for this year, when I entered here, I wondered if it was a theme park”.
While urging everyone to embrace the message and spirit of Christmas, which is about peace, love, forgiveness and above all, respect for humanity, Onyeagwu prayed for peace in every home, business and the nation and that this year’s celebration will be like no other. the rest we saw.
Zenith Bank has clearly distinguished itself in the Nigerian financial services industry as an institution committed to building a more sustainable and inclusive economy and promoting responsible business practices in Nigeria through integration on the principles of sustaining its business operations.
The bank’s sustainability and CSR initiatives depend on the belief that today’s business performance is not only about financial numbers – the bank believes that the social investment of an institution, contributions to inclusive growth and development in the economy as well as the improvement in the condition of the physical environment. , all constitute a balanced scorecard.
Through CSR initiatives, Zenith Bank embodies the general purpose of the 17 Sustainable Development Goals (SDGs), which provide a framework for solving the major challenges facing society. Its social investments are aimed at health, education, women and youth empowerment, sports development and public infrastructure development. Overall, Zenith Bank’s total CSR investment in 2021 is NGN4.37 billion, representing 1.79% of Profit After Tax (PAT) and a 33.1% increase from 2020.
The bank remains committed to sustaining the economic, cultural and social development of its host communities, particularly through community-based and philanthropic initiatives. As a good corporate citizen, it continues to deliver projects with long-term social and economic benefits for communities because it believes that its business is as strong as the communities in which it operates.
To demonstrate its commitment to creating and expanding opportunities, the bank regularly makes donations for the construction of ultramodern ICT centers in many educational institutions and cities across the country. It also supports various development projects, and healthcare delivery causes in Nigeria and contributes to the development of sports in Nigeria through its sponsorship of the Zenith Women Basketball League and the Zenith Bank Delta State Principal and Headmaster’s Football Competitions, among others.
In recognition of its contributions and social investment in its host communities and society in general, the bank was recognized by the Sustainability, Enterprise, and Responsibility (SERAS) Awards 2021 as “Most Responsible Organization in Africa”.