Wife of Taraba State Governor, Anna Darius Ishaku has commended Fidelity
Bank Plc for providing a three-day free medical outreach to 829
Internally Displaced Persons (IDPs) in Kona community, Jalingo Taraba
State, as part of its Corporate Social Responsibility (CSR) initiatives.
The Hope Afresh Foundation organised the outreach in collaboration with
employees of the bank who, driven purely by altruistic values and an
innate desire to make the world a better place, pulled their resources
together to offer free qualitative healthcare to the people.
The first lady applauded the Bank for identifying healthcare as an
integral part of its CSR strategy, especially during the Coronavirus
(COVID-19) pandemic. Addressing beneficiaries in Kona Community, the
Governor’s wife appealed to the indigenes to carry out regular medical
checkups in order to reduce cases of diabetes, cancer, hepatitis, high
blood pressure, amongst other ailments.
Mrs. Ishaku who is also the Founder and Chief Executive Officer, Hope
Afresh Foundation encouraged indigenes of the community to come out in
large numbers to take part in the free medical outreach. She however
urged other corporate bodies, non-governmental and governmental
organizations, and other well-meaning Nigerians to emulate the bank by
giving back to the society. In the same vein, Chief (KURU) of Kona, HRH
Augustine Njenmang Vengkani also expressed sincere gratitude to the Bank
for the kind gesture.
Commenting on the benefits of the exercise, Fidelity Bank MD/CEO, Nnamdi
Okonkwo stated that the outreach is in line with the bank’s CSR
philosophy which focuses on the environment, education, health, and
social welfare. Okonkwo who was represented by the Head of CSR &
Sustainability, Chris Nnakwe pointed out that corporate philanthropy
remains an effective way to positively influence society.
Okonkwo noted that the Bank has invested in the Health sector through
infrastructural development, medical outreach, and others. “At Fidelity
Bank, we understand that good health and well-being are fundamental to
sustainable development. As much as the world has made significant
progress in fighting the Covid-19 pandemic, basic access to healthcare
remains a challenge in Nigeria”, he added
The outreach provided many opportunities for employees of the bank to
bond and build mutually beneficial relationships with the people of Kona
community and Taraba State. By collaborating with the Hope Afresh
Foundation, the bank provided a variety of medical tests and
prescription drugs that would help promote the general health and
well-being of IDP’s in Kona community of Taraba State.