Ecobank 2021 health walks:  Staff, customers in solidarity with victims of mental health

By Ezurike Ugochukwu

Ecobank the PAN African bank will Saturday 23 October embark on 2021 health walk with its staff, families and customers participating to create awareness on the discrimination against victims of mental health.

The event being celebrated across the 33 African countries where the bank operates is part of the various activities earmarked to commomorate this year’s Ecobank Day.

The event is a flagship annual event when staff of the bank show commitment and give back to local communities where the bank has operations.

Arrangements have been made for staff, their families, customers, and members of the community to engage in health walks across the country, health checks and fitness sessions, amongst others.

Head, Marketing and Corporate Communication, Ecobank Nigeria, Jide Sipe said this year’s Ecobank Day with the theme: Mental Health – Time to Talk and Act! marks the start of the final year of the three-year campaign to raise awareness and help prevent Non-Communicable Diseases (NCDs) in Africa.  He noted that the bank will be hosting impactful discussion sessions and mental health empowerment training programs to further raise awareness and help reduce stigma and discrimination in Nigeria.

According to him, apart from marking the Ecobank Day with a webinar, which is both virtual and physical, the bank has also lined up various activities to enhance the mental status of various Nigerians. He explained further that “In the webinar, we will discuss mental health disorders, raise awareness about them, and the care and support options available. We will be encouraging people to talk about their feelings and suggest lifestyle behaviour changes which can also make a difference – like exercising regularly. There is often a lot of stigmas around mental health. Those affected can face isolation, exclusion from work and family life, increased stress levels, negative addictive behaviours and substance abuse. No one should be made to feel ashamed because of a mental health issue. It can happen to anyone at any time.”

Due to the importance of the topic, Ecobank Nigeria has invited select speakers that will be making presentations on the Day. They include Dr Olusola Olowookere, Consultant Psychiatrist/ Forensic Medical Examiner; Titilayo Medunoye, Founder/CEO, Milky Express; Oluwakemi Akintoyese, Clinical Psychologist; Hadiza Blell -Olo (Di’Ja), Artist and Humanitarian); Dr. Tomilola Oyekunle, a registered Psychologist and host of others,

Ecobank Benin donating Insulin doses to Insulin bank

Since the inaugural Ecobank Day in 2013, Ecobank employees have supported a variety of causes and shown compassion for the welfare of our various local communities. Previous initiatives have focused on orphanages, cancer screening, education, maternal healthcare, safe water supply and malaria prevention.