On the 10th anniversary of the founding of the International Day of the Girl Child (IDGC), Standard Bank Plc is reaffirming its commitment to continue investing in girls’ education as one way of contributing to the country’s economic growth.
Speaking in Lilongwe where Standard Bank hosted 100 girls from 8 different private and government schools to mark this year’s IDGC, Regional and Country Head of People and Culture (East Africa and Malawi) Zandile Tembo said the Bank remains firmly committed to the cause of girl empowerment.
“This year we participate in the global celebration for IDGC by conducting our iconic “Bring A Girl Child to Work” mentorship event at the Bank’s offices. We believe that Malawi is our home, and we drive her growth. That is why we in invest in girls with the confidence that each one of them can play a part in developing the country,” she said.
Tembo said to underline its commitment to support girls’ education, over the years Standard Bank has invested in learning infrastructure, scholarships, and mentorship programmes.
On infrastructure, Standard Bank has this year invested K163 million in hostels at Lilongwe Girls Secondary School in partnership with Press Trust. Last year, the Bank built two classroom blocks at Mzuzu Government Secondary School, and earlier another two blocks at Che Januare Primary School in Chiradzulu.
The Bank has a running scholarship with Press Trust Ltd that supports 74 secondary school students across the country, 50% of which are girls.
Tembo said the initiative aimed to expose them to a live working environment to give the girls a real experience of working in various careers.
“We have taken the opportunity that the IDGC offers to empower and inspire young girls to become the future change makers and leaders of Malawi. The girls get a front row seat in understanding various careers ranging from Banking, I.T, Operations, Legal, Finance and many more,” she said.
During the visit, the girls were sent to various departments of the Bank to learn the ropes of a full-fledged financial services and banking institution.