As a way of demonstrating its commitment to ethics, professional excellence, capacity building and inclusive growth of Nigerians, First Bank of Nigeria Limited is partnering with CFA Society Nigeria for this year’s edition of its Ethics Challenge.

The Ethics Challenge, one of the university outreach programmes organised by CFA Society Nigeria for university students, aims to promote the highest standards of ethics, education, and professional excellence in the investment industry and this aligns with the Corporate Responsibility & Sustainability  strategic approach and the objective of the Bank’s Endowment programme – the Samuel Asabia Chair for Business Ethics at the University of Lagos.

According to FirstBank’s management, the partnership will also showcase the Bank’s support for education amongst youths and the drive for nation building.

Speaking on the event, which holds between November 2 (Lagos and Abuja) and November 3 (Lagos only) 2018, Folake Ani-Mumuney, the Group Head, Marketing & Corporate Communications, First Bank of Nigeria Limited, said that it s a part of the Bank’s ambition to raise the next generation of financial analysts who will operate under the appropriate guiding principles.

“This partnership is an improvement of last year’s edition of the programme. We realise to need to carry out adequate engagement with students as regards business ethics. That way, we will be shaping the future of the investment industry in Nigeria,” Folake Ani-Mumuney said.

With seven universities competing in the 2017 ethics challenge, CFA Society has set out to increase the impact of the 2018 version by expanding the number of participating universities from seven to twelve, including at least one West African university.

This year, the programme will run regional competitions in Abuja and Lagos before running a National Final in Lagos.

Also, in line with its ‘Women in Investment Management Initiative’ and to encourage women inclusion, the CFA society has added a requirement that each team must be represented by an equal number of female and male students.

Mrs. Ani-Mumuney said that it is hoped that these two strategic improvements will position the competition to enable the Bank make bigger impacts through the Ethics Challenge.

Participating Universities for the programme are Babcock University, Bowen University, Covenant University, Ekiti State University, Mountain Top University, Obafemi Awolowo University Ile-Ife, University of Benin, University of Calabar, University of Ibadan as well as University of Lagos for the Lagos preliminary round, while the  Abuja Based preliminary round will have University of Abuja, University of Maiduguri, University of Illorin, University of Nigeria and Madonna University participating.

The competition will take place in two rounds with the preliminary rounds taking place in Lagos and Abuja. Thereafter, two qualifiers from the Abuja region and four qualifiers from Lagos region will converge in Lagos for the grand finale. “