Poverty eradication is a pressing problem that should keep world leaders up at night, Olusegun Alebiosu, the Chief Executive Officer of FirstBank, the premier West African financial institution has said.
Alebiosu who spoke in an interview with Arise TV on the sidelines of the 79th United Nations General Assembly in New York also highlighted climate change and gender inequality as equally pressing issues that demand attention and action.
Alebiosu stressed that poverty, in all its forms, stems from a lack of access and resources. He highlighted that finance is the most critical factor in combating poverty in the 21st century. “The easiest way to get out of poverty is access to finance,” he noted.
Some of the important discussion topics during the UN Global Compact Leaders’ Summit, according to Alebiosu, included innovative financing, sustainable financing, and the impact of artificial intelligence on humanity.
He stressed the critical need to develop human resources to tackle the widening economic gap between developed and developing nations. This emphasis on human resource development echoes the United Nations’ focus on sustainable development and equality, particularly in areas such as gender equality, climate action, and living wages.
The FirstBank boss identified financial inclusion as a key area for the bank to address in supporting poverty alleviation under the sustainable development goals.
FirstBank considers financial inclusion a central part of its business strategy, resulting in the extension of over N36 billion in loans to women in 2023 and the development of a gender market strategy to strengthen the Bank’s women portfolio.
Alebiosu highlighted FirstBank’s extensive Firstmonie agents’ network in Nigeria, which surpassed 232,000 in 2023, with over 55,000 of the agents being women who continue to offer financial services in their communities as a testament to the power of financing in advancing economic interests and promoting economic development.
Alebiosu expressed his vision for the future, saying “FirstBank will further be entrenched into the fabric of the society, earning a place in the hearts and minds of Nigerians as a Giant advocate for economic development in Nigeria and Africa as a whole.”
The UN Global Compact Leaders’ Summit is an annual day-long conference that empowers private sector leaders to drive sustainable development and advance the 2030 Agenda.
The event provides a unique platform for business leaders, UN officials, government leaders, SDG stakeholders, and civil society professionals to converge and explore innovative solutions with actionable insights. This year’s edition was held in New York, on Tuesday, September 24, 2024.
