May 22, 2015 : Oyetunji Abioye
Stanbic
IBTC Bank and a leading business school in Spain, IE Business School,
have signed a direct financing agreement to help people acquire relevant
skills in entrepreneurship.
A statement by the bank on Wednesday
said the parties signed the MoU in Lagos to commence the partnership in
which the lender would provide loan facilities for students enrolled in
the IE’s top ranked MBA programmes.
IE is ranked the third business school
in Europe by the Financial Times. Its Global Executive MBA was recently
ranked first by the Economist.
The collaboration, which will be
operative for an initial period of one year from May 2015 and renewable
for another year, covers financing for the IE’s MBA and the Executive
MBA programmes.
According
to the statement, Stanbic IBTC Bank, a member of Stanbic IBTC Holdings
Plc, will finance a part or the total cost of the programmes, which IE
offers qualified candidates who have been accepted to the programme. The
financing will come in the form of an unsecured personal loan.
The Executive Director, Personal and
Business Banking, Stanbic IBTC Bank, Mr. Obinnia Abajue, said the
partnership was in line with the institution’s goal of ensuing economic
empowerment through strategic interventions that would enable
individuals and businesses to realise their aspirations.
He noted that it was the pursuit of this
objective that informed the creation of the Stanbic IBTC Business
Leadership Series, which made its debut last year, to build a new cadre
of leaders among people and businesses in Nigeria.
It said similar capacity-building
initiatives in the various sectors of the economy, including the MSME,
transport and logistics, trade and finance, had also been organised by
the Stanbic IBTC Group on an ongoing basis to support individuals and
businesses.
He said, “The partnership with the IE
opens another window of opportunity to empower people for
self-development and actualisation. It is in sync with our operating
mantra, which is moving forward.
“At Stanbic IBTC Bank, we are mindful of
the fact that socio-economic growth and development are anchored on
sound education and robust infrastructural base. This conviction
underscores our strategic interventions in critical sectors of the
economy, including education.”
On his part, the IE Vice-Chairman, Diego
Benjumea, who noted that the institution remained dedicated to building
business leaders worldwide, said Stanbic IBTC Bank was chosen for the
partnership after a thorough appraisal revealed its uncommon commitment
to multi-sectoral capacity building and economic empowerment.
Having become Africa’s biggest economy,
with its rebasing throwing up previously under-reported sectors such as
telecommunications, entertainment, and retail, the IE´s Country
Director, Eniola Harrison, said Nigeria required, in both public and
private sectors, a critical mass of skilled manpower to drive its future
growth, while sustaining its growing international profile and
reputation.
Benjumea, however, said, “A major goal
of the IE is to help people acquire the necessary skills and knowledge
and drive business excellence around the world. We have the right
curriculum, which we regularly update, to ensure that our qualifications
reflect the ever-changing needs of business and economy.
“In the Nigerian and African context, we
are committed to building the foundation for long-term and sustainable
success. We are constantly scanning the horizon to ensure that our
graduates are equipped with cutting-edge knowledge of their
professions.”
According to the bank, under the scheme,
participants who have been admitted by the IE for its Masters
programmes would qualify for financing from Stanbic IBTC Bank under its
unsecured personal loan scheme.
Beneficiaries who are not existing
customers of Stanbic IBTC Bank would be required to open accounts with
the bank. The bank would bear up to 100 per cent of the value of the
programme based on prevailing interest rate, it added.
Founded in 1973, each year, almost 2,000
students from 90 countries undertake degree programmes at the IE, while
about 5,600 persons participate in the school’s annual executive
education programmes. With offices in 28 countries, the school has
approximately 40,000 alumni in over 100 countries.
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