The Christmas and Yuletide season came to life at the 2022 Zenith Bank Christmas Light-Up Ceremony, which took place on Saturday, November 19, 2022, at the Ajose Adeogun Street Roundabout in Victoria Island, Lagos. The official lighting ceremony, which was performed by Zenith Bank Plc’s Group Managing Director/CEO, Mr. Ebenezer Onyeagwu, with the support of Executive Management, was witnessed by many of the bank’s staff and customers, with others participating virtually.
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 an annual Corporate Social Responsibility (CSR) initiative by the bank to herald the yuletide season through the beautification of Ajose Adeogun Street – home to Zenith Bank’s Corporate Headquarters – which has come to be recognised as an iconic place, attracting people from all walks of life who visit with their families and friends to take pictures and make videos of the wonderful spectacle, especially at night and enjoy the ambience of the street and season.
During the ceremony, Onyeagwu expressed his joy at heralding the 2022 holiday season by lighting up the iconic Ajose Adeogun Street. “Today is a special day,” he says. It is unique because we will turn on the Christmas lights and activate the Christmas spirit, which we usually do yearly. It is also unique because we are honoured and delighted to have Mrs. Kay Ovia, our founder and chairman’s wife, among us.”
He praised Quantum Markets, the company responsible for the annual decorations, for the outstanding, very creative and extremely beautiful work that they have done. According to him, “when you look at the Christmas set-up we have every year, it looks completely different, and there is no repetition of themes. And when we think we have seen it all, by the time a new one comes, it is something completely different and massively so. The one for this year, as I entered here, I was wondering if this is a theme park”.
Whilst urging everyone to imbibe 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 in the country and that this year’s celebration would be like no other that we have seen.
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 integrating sustainability principles in its business operations.
The bank’s sustainability and CSR initiatives are hinged on the belief that today’s business performance is not all about the financial numbers – the bank believes that an institution’s social investments, contributions to inclusive economic growth and development as well as improvements in the condition of the physical environment, all constitute a balanced scorecard.
Through its CSR initiatives, Zenith Bank has embodied the overarching objective of the 17 Sustainable Development Goals (SDGs), which provide a framework for addressing the major challenges confronting society. Its social investments target health, education, women and youth empowerment, sports development and public infrastructure enhancement. Zenith Bank’s total CSR investment in 2021 was NGN4.37 billion, representing 1.79% of its Profit After Tax (PAT) and 33.1% increase from 2020.
The bank remains committed to advancing the economic, cultural, and social development of host communities, particularly through community-based initiatives and philanthropy. It continues to deliver projects that have long-term social and economic benefits for the communities as a good corporate citizen because it believes that its business is only as strong as the communities in which it operates.
To demonstrate its commitment to creating and expanding opportunities, the bank makes regular donations to establish cutting-edge ICT centres in several educational institutions and cities across the country. It also contributes to developing sports in Nigeria by sponsoring the Zenith Women Basketball League and the Zenith Bank Delta State Principal’s and Headmaster’s Football Competitions, among others.
The bank was named the “Most Responsible Organization in Africa” at the Sustainability, Enterprise, and Responsibility (SERAS) Awards 2021 in recognition of its contributions and social investments to its host communities and society at large.
