The Board of the Nigeria Entrepreneurs Award (NEA) has named Ecobank Nigeria as the best Supporting Bank to Micro, Small and Medium Scale Enterprises in Nigeria for 2018. 

According to the board, Ecobank was selected alongside winners in other categories following a rigorous process that saw 2,364 nominations across different sectors for their socio-economic impact and entrepreneurial achievements in 2018. The Nigeria Entrepreneurs Award is a platform created to celebrate and honour young and emerging entrepreneurs, business executives, corporate organizations and heads of government agencies that have positively impacted the nation’s economy.

The Nigeria Entrepreneurs Award (NEA) stated that Ecobank won MSME Bank of The Year award based on its sterling performance and contributions towards national development with a focus on promoting growth and innovation in business.

Speaking at the award ceremony in Lagos over the weekend, Executive Director, Nigeria Entrepreneurs Award, Uwabor Joshua, said the Award remains the number one platform that identifies, celebrates and honor Nigerian entrepreneurs who have made a difference and are an inspiration to others. He stated that since the inception of the award four years ago, more than 60 entrepreneurs, heads of government, agencies, corporate organisations from around the country have been recognized for their vital contributions to the economy.

According to him, “This Award is remarkably the most prestigious and highly celebrated business award in Nigeria. This is recognizing entrepreneurs and game changers of business in Nigeria for their continuing commitment to excellence, developing best practices and innovative strategies. The idea behind the Award is to promote a culture of excellence in young and emerging business leaders and showcase thriving businesses in the country.”

He explained that the judging process for the various awards is robust and driven by intensive research to identify worthy nominees who have shown outstanding entrepreneurial and corporate behavior. According to Mr Uwabor, only those that delivered immense value to their customers, shareholders and whose impact have benefited the society in the course of the year were selected.

In his acknowledgment the Managing Director, Ecobank Nigeria, Patrick Akinwuntan, reiterated the commitment of Ecobank to continuously support the development of the nation’s economy through its unwavering support to micro, small and medium enterprises. He noted that the MSME award will further stir the bank not to rest in its oars towards the development of the nation’s economy. The Managing Director, who was represented by Head, Commercial Banking, Rotimi Morohunfola, maintained that the award did not come as a surprise despite the stringent criteria put in place by the organisers. He noted that the bank had consistently engaged in various initiatives to support the growth of the various sector of the economy.

Further the bank Managing Director said, “this year alone, we have embarked on various initiatives that support aggressive growth in key sectors that includes agriculture, export and import business finance, amongst other. We have also put in place digital banking that is creating ease of payments, collection and transactions for businesses.”

Some other awardees include, Aiteo Group, Organizations Making Difference in Nigeria; Dr. Kingsley Okonkwo, Entrepreneur of the Year; FrieslandCampina Wamco Plc, Labour Friendly Organisation of the Year; Victoria Crest Homes Limited, Reliable Real Estate Organisation of the Year, and among others.