Lagos, Tuesday, 11 January 2022.
First Bank of Nigeria Limited, Nigeria’s premier and leading financial inclusion services provider has announced its “Nigerian Economic Outlook Webinar” convened to reflect national and global economic trends that shaped 2021, whilst forecasting the economic outlook of 2022.
The virtual event themed “A rearview look at 2021, lessons learnt-Outlook 2022” is scheduled by 1 pm on Thursday, 13th January 2022 via Zoom meeting. Click on the link https://firstbanknigeria.zoom.us/webinar/register/WN_zrF8VViyTp6wnzED_3IpWw to register and participate in the event. Registration is Free!!!
The webinar aims to set the tone for the year by providing an opportunity for participants to learn directly from economic experts to stay informed and knowledgeably empowered to make the right decisions in their socio-economic activities in 2022 which will be impacted by the micro and macro-economic activities of the country.
With Nigeria’s economy projected to grow by 2.7% in 2022 as predicted by The International Monetary Fund (IMF) based on an expected recovery in crude oil prices and production, Nigeria will see economic activities normalizing. Key economic activities to watch out for in 2022 include the Global Market trends, removal of subsidies, and floatation of the Naira. However, recoveries in the oil sector and maximization of the e-Naira could help keep the parallel market in check.
Bismarck Rewane, the Managing Director/Chief Executive Officer of Financial Derivatives Company Limited and the event’s keynote speaker will lead deliberations at the event. Other speakers are Ini Ebong, Executive Director, First Bank of Nigeria Limited Treasury and International Banking; Opeyemi Agbaje, Chief Executive Officer (CEO) of RTC Advisory Services Limited, Olaitan Martins, Group Executive, Transaction Banking and Augustine Uddin, the Chief Economist, FirstBank.
Since the outbreak of Covid-19 over two years ago, the global economy has witnessed viral economic shocks that adversely affected socio-economic activities. These have left many individuals and businesses struggling to stay afloat amid the economic downturn. As a leading financial inclusion services provider in the country, FirstBank has remained committed to providing products, services and initiatives that have been crucial in mitigating the adverse effects of Covid-19 on individuals and households.
Speaking on the event, the Group Head, Marketing & Corporate Communications of FirstBank, Ms. Folake Ani-Mumuney said ‘being woven into fabric of the society for over 127 years means that we provide value, support and innovation-driven solutions for our stakeholders regardless of the challenges of the pandemic. Our commitment to nation-building is anchored partly on our thought leadership role designed to relentlessly drive growth and scale for all through engagements that showcase versatile subject matter experts endowed with expertise, knowledge and valuable insights. The webinar provides a platform for cross fertilization of ideas and opportunities to learn and grow. Nigeria is a country rich in human and natural resources and these have helped in the reforms and resilience reflected in the economy in 2021’.
The COVID 19 pandemic brought disruption and challenges and largely Nigeria adopted measures to contain it. The pandemic also provided opportunities for rebuilding and facilitating economic transformation to close the gap with the rest of the world. These include innovations in information technologies (IT) which have been critical to ensuring business continuity and productivity among firms that have re-designed their work processes as well as telecommunications and payment systems in the e-commerce sub-sector.
Whilst many of the current government policies are aimed at absorbing the shocks induced by the pandemic, it is important to note that an economy that seeks to recover and build resilience should be one that focuses on innovation and creativity in driving its goal.
The event is for everyone as discussants will have the economic outlook for 2022 dissected so participants are knowledgeably equipped to make the right decisions thereby better planning their business and financial activities.
About FirstBank
First Bank of Nigeria Limited (FirstBank) is the premier Bank in West Africa and the leading financial inclusion services provider in Nigeria for over 127 years.
With over 750 business locations and over 150,000 Banking Agents spread across 99% of the 774 Local Government Areas in Nigeria, FirstBank provides a comprehensive range of retail and corporate financial services to serve its over 30 million customers. The Bank has an international presence through its subsidiaries, FBNBank (UK) Limited in London and Paris, FBNBank in the Republic of Congo, Ghana, The Gambia, Guinea, Sierra-Leone and Senegal, as well as a Representative Office in Beijing.
The Bank has been handy at promoting digital payment in the country and has issued over 10million cards, the first bank to achieve such a milestone in the country. FirstBank’s cashless transaction drive extends to having more than 10million people on its USSD Quick Banking service through the nationally renowned *894# Banking code and over 4.5 million people on FirstMobile platform.
Since its establishment in 1894, FirstBank has consistently built relationships with customers focusing on the fundamentals of good corporate governance, strong liquidity, optimised risk management and leadership. Over the years, the Bank has led the financing of private investment in infrastructure development in the Nigerian economy by playing key roles in the Federal Government’s privatisation and commercialisation schemes. With its global reach, FirstBank provides prospective investors wishing to explore the vast business opportunities that are available in Nigeria, an internationally competitive world-class brand and a credible financial partner.
FirstBank has been named “Most Valuable Bank Brand in Nigeria” six times in a row (2011 – 2016) by the globally renowned “The Banker Magazine” of the Financial Times Group; “Best Retail Bank in Nigeria” for seven consecutive years (2011 – 2017) by the Asian Banker International Excellence in Retail Financial Services Awards and “Best Bank in Nigeria” by Global Finance for 15 years. Our brand purpose is always to put customers, partners and stakeholders at the heart of our business, even as we standardise customer experience and excellence in financial solutions across sub-Saharan Africa, in consonance with our brand vision “To be the partner of the first choice in building your future”. Our brand promise is always to deliver the ultimate “gold standard” of value and excellence. This commitment is anchored on our inherent values of passion, partnership and people, to position You First in every respect.
Folake Ani-Mumuney
Group Head, Marketing & Corporate Communications