Fidelity Bank Helping Hands CSR Projects skewed against South East, other geopolitical zones
By Godson Ikoro
Fidelity Bank’s Helping Hands Corporate Social Responsibility (CSR) programme is making tremendous impacts on communities where the branches are domiciled but its projects are skewed against the South East and other geopolitical zones.
A closer look at the projects so far executed in the areas of education, health care, youth empowerment, social welfare and food bank are quite commendable though the distribution of the project is unduly over concentrated in Lagos State and visibly skewed against the South East more than any other geopolitical zone.
Going by the distribution of the projects executed in the five years period, 2016 to 2020,as published on Fidelity bank website, Lagos had the greatest concentration and gets the highest budget allocation from the management.
In 2016, out of the 17 CSR projects executed, Lagos had seven compared to only one project in Anambra State. In 2017, out of 16 projects executed, Lagos had seven ,the South East had none. Likewise in 2018, out of 13 projects, Lagos had seven while none is executed in the South East. In 2019, out of the 27 projects executed, Lagos had 20, only two projects were executed in the South East. Finally in 2020, amidst COVID-19 recovery efforts , the bank executed only five projects,and four in Lagos while one was in Ibadan, Oyo State.
Curiously, during the five years, commercial cities like Aba and Onitsha were not in the equation.Meanwhile ,Lagos State enjoyed 45 projects compared to three in the South East geopolitical region.
Baffled by this skewed distribution ,Revolnews Online sought to interrogate further the calculus, permutation and differentiation behind the location of these projects,as it raises questions of fairness,intergrity and inclusivity.
Revolnews gathered that a management policy states that branches or regions of the bank should carry out FHHP CSR programme to be funded by 50 : 50 ratio between the management and the branch or region originating the project in question.
Branches, Business Service Units and Corporate Banking are mandated to carry out marketing cum CSR programmes at least once in a quarter in their area of operation.
Further more,every helping hands project starts from the branch identifying a need in its immediate community which it compassionately wishes to meet.
For instance, something like provision of water where it operates. After securing a buy-in of the community leaders ,the branch goes ahead to determine the cost of sinking a borehole. With half of the total cost already generated voluntarily the branch approaches the head office. Then the management provides the other half to match what the branch has raised , that is why it is called matching fund.
The branch staff are said to voluntarily contribute half of the amount on the basis of each according to his or her grade and ability . Then management provides what it calls the matching fund to execute the project.
Through these projects , Fidelity Bank has indeed impacted communities where their branches are domiciled across the country; making it easy for residents of the community to always identify with the bank, enhancing the brand and tremendously boosting its marketing.
Fidelity management often said that it is using the FHHP to inculcate in staff the attitude of giving back to the society in their own little ways ; promoting closer relationships between them, helping them to collaborate effectively and work more creatively.
It sees FHHP as a vital component of its corporate social responsibility strategy, intended to create positive change and improve the lives of individuals and communities across Nigeria.
When Revolnews reached out to the Head of Corporate Communications of the bank ,Dr Meksley Nwagboh to explain the philosophy behind FHHP, the matching fund and whether it is ethical for the bank to ask staff to fund a CSR project albeit voluntarily or involuntarily.
He denied that there was 50: 50 sharing of FHHP funding between staff and management. Rather he averred that management is the one giving staff money and not tasking or taxing them to raise money for these projects.
He said that the bank staff in the South East and other geopolitical zones are enjoined to be as CSR conscious and willing to voluntarily contribute as their Lagos counterparts; stressing that the bank is ever willing to them a matching fund if any branch comes up with any of such FHHP projects.
While emphasizing that the bank does not penalize or sack any staff for not contributing,
he challenged south east branches to emulate their colleagues in Lagos; adding that the matching fund is available to all geopolitical zone.
” The management does not discriminate in giving out the matching fund provided the project will benefit the immediate environment. He urged other geopolitical to embrace the FHHP to make the distribution of the projects matching funds more staccato, if not even across the country.
He emphasized that people should see the programme for what it is and not misconstrue it as a smokescreen covering how the management is forcing staff to bear marketing and CSR costs.
“We have not sacked or penalized any staff for not contributing to execute FHHP, ” he said, contending that it was voluntary and people should commend the bank for this model of CSR.
However, he pointed out that the FHHP CSR is different from the bank’s mega CSR which usually attracts bigger investment compared to FHHP.
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