Monday, May 21, 2012 / CIBN

Being the acceptance speech delivered by Mr. Segun Aina, OFR, FCIB on His Election and Investiture as the 17th President of the Chartered Institute of Bankers of Nigeria (CIBN) on Saturday, 19th May 2012 

ACCEPTANCE 
With gratitude to God and with joy in my heart, I stand before you all this afternoon to accept with humility, the honour and privilege of my election and investiture as the 17^th President of the Chartered Institute of Bankers of Nigeria (CIBN). I am doing this also on behalf of all the Office Holders and members of the Governing Council elected today. May I therefore congratulate all my colleagues who will serve with me on the Council for the next two years.
 

In accepting this honour, I am aware of the great responsibility that this Office places on me and indeed, the high expectations from various stakeholders. I am, however, convinced that with the support of all our members and other stakeholders, we will build successfully on the foundation already laid as we propel this great Institute to lofty heights yet to be imagined.
 

Professional Banking Institute in Nigeria has come a long way, right from its humble beginnings in 1963, when the Lagos local Centre of the Institute of Bankers of London was set up. Indeed, by next year, 2013, we shall be celebrating 50 (fifty) years of the existence of professional banking institute in Nigeria!
 

APPRECIATION AND RECOGNITION 
It is necessary to give adequate recognition and acknowledgment to the founding fathers of the Institute, to all the Past Presidents, to members who have served on the Governing Council at various times as well as all categories of members, the Bankers Committee, all of who built and sustained the Institute till this present day. The Body of Past Presidents has continued to provide with admirable passion, the necessary guidance and support over time. I commend and thank them for their selfless service.
 

In this regards, it is necessary to specially acknowledge the exemplary performance of the immediate Past President, Mr. Joseph Laoye Jaiyeola FCIB, who has displayed a total commitment to the development of the Institute and introduced a number of transformational initiatives during his tenure. No doubt vital building blocks were put in place to usher the Institute into a new dawn. 

SERVICE COMMITMENT 
On my part I consider my new assignment as President and Chairman of Council as a continuation of my service to the Institute, a commitment I have maintained for about three decades, in various capacities and at various levels. During this period of service and apparent tutelage, I have had the unique privilege of working or serving along with fifteen out of the sixteen Past Presidents. I am aware that all the other distinguished personalities elected into various positions today, apart from having also previously served this Institute in various capacities in the past, bring diverse and rich experience and endowments to the team, all of which will be tapped to provide the quality leadership needed to achieve our desired goals. We will also blend the wisdom and experience of the older generation of members with the dynamism, enterprise and creativity of the younger generation in our quest to position the Institute as one that proactively anticipates the needs of future generation of bankers and prepares them for the evolving future of banking business. 

TENURE FOCUS 
This acceptance speech will not be complete if I do not share with you an outline of what will be our focus and the core initiatives the Governing Council will work on under my leadership for the next two years. Understandably, a number of these initiatives are derived from some programmes of previous Governing Councils, since the Presidency and the Council are institutions with interlocking tenures that guarantee seamless continuity in the affairs of the Institute. Other initiatives have been identified after wide consultations and engagements with various subject matter experts and stakeholders of the Institute.
 

In all our activities, we will take full cognizance of the provisions of the CIBN Act No 5 of 2007 and the core responsibilities of the Institute as stated in Part II Section 3. In implementing our areas of focus, we will explore fresh ways of addressing old issues and challenges and endeavor to do things differently as well as doing different things.
 

Specifically, the acronym BAROMETER shall capture the focus of my tenure, our tenure. This will not only help drive delivery but also a benchmark for measuring results as well.

-       Best Practice

-       Alliances

-       Relevance

-       Opportunities

-       Membership,

-       Education,

-       Technology,

-       Ethics and

-       Research

This tenure agenda will be measured and reviewed regularly to ensure sustained focus on the end goals. Periodic updates on progress and milestone attainments will be communicated to the relevant stakeholders as defined within our communications plan. The BAROMETER strategy will be achieved as follows: 

1. Best Practice 

The Institute will, more than ever before, foster and nurture world-class professional banking education and practice within the Nigerian environment.

In furtherance of the global best practice goal, the leadership of the Institute had in the last few months conducted benchmarking trips and study tours to the Chartered Banker Institute Scotland (the oldest Institute of Bankers in the world), Indian Institute of Banking and Finance (the Institute of Bankers with the largest membership the world over), Institute of Bankers in Malaysia, CSI Global Education of Canada (the successor organisation to the Institute of Canadian Bankers), Canadian Bankers Association and the Chartered Institute of Bankers, Ghana. The positive outcomes of these engagements will be strategically rolled out in the coming months.

More importantly, CIBN will also play a leading “founder-member” role in the evolving Global Banking Education Standards Board (GBEStB) due for launching in 2013 during the World Congress of Banking Institutes.

CIBN represents African Banking Institutes on the Task Force set up to actualize the evolution of the organisation. Other Task Force members include Banking Institutes from Scotland, India, Malaysia, EBTN (representing European Banking Institutes) and Hong Kong.

The proposed GBEStB, a voluntary, industry-led initiative to be founded by the world’s leading Banking Institutes seeks to build confidence in the competence of Bankers with a major objective of developing clear internationally agreed standards for the education of professional bankers. It is estimated that there are about one hundred professional banking institutes in the world. 

2. Alliances

New key relationships will be developed in order to promote knowledge sharing, transfer and exchange with relevant bodies and institutions of repute in the international and domestic environments. Collaboration and partnership initiatives will be developed to ensure that fresh ideas are constantly channeled into the Institute’s system toward the fulfillment of key aspects of its mandate.

Some of these strategic partnerships will be with “best of breed” institutions both within Nigeria and overseas. Examples of such organisations will include the International Finance Corporation (IFC), the Lagos Business School of The Pan African University, selected tertiary institutions, UK Department for International Development (DFID), the Canadian Government/Institutions, other Diplomatic Missions, relevant Government Agencies, amongst others.

3. Relevance 

Now, more than ever before, there is a need for the Institute to play more policy advocacy roles and ensure it positively influences the decision making machinery of sector regulators and government especially at the national level. In this regard, upgrading of the status and expansion of the responsibilities of the existing Zonal Centre in Abuja is deemed imperative. A National Secretariat Annex will therefore be established in Abuja as soon as possible.

Further to this, the Institute will leverage its influence in order to achieve positive outcomes for the profession, the Industry and the wider society through the following;

• *Design of Financial Literary Programs/Courses for the banking public;
  
• *Well-researched and timely input into proposed major policies that will impact banking business and practice in Nigeria;
• *Place greater emphasis on stakeholder communications; and
• *Foster better and stronger relationship with the leadership of all banks, including close liaison and interaction with Bankers’ Committee. 

4. Opportunities

Opportunities exist in the institute’s enabling Act, the suasive enforcement of which will enable CIBN contribute more significantly to the financial system and the overall economy.

Also, Nigerian banks have penetrated other African countries and this gives the Institute a unique opportunity to become the hub of professional banking education and an advocate of global banking standards and policies within the African continent. CIBN is currently Chairman of Alliance of African Institute of Bankers (AAIOB) and will leverage on this position to drive this agenda.

5. Membership

The strength of the Institute lies in its membership. To this end various initiatives aimed at promoting a more inclusive participation of members in the activities of the Institute have been identified. Some of these include:

• *New initiatives to aggressively grow total membership which currently stands at about 97,000 (ninety-seven thousand);
  
• *Enrich membership benefits by implementing new value-adding features;
  
• *Internationalize membership and linkages with international professional groups;
  
• *Restructure Branch and Chapter arrangements as well as Zonal offices in order to ensure total inclusion. We will also pursue the creation of Zonal Learning Centres;
  
• *Undertake impactful visits to many of the existing 36 branches nationwide and resuscitate some inactive branches while inaugurating new ones;
  
• *Focused engagement and awareness campaign on the unique skills, knowledge and competence of Chartered Bankers, which are directly relevant and valuable to government establishments, academics, non-bank and other private institutions either for full time employment or in private practice with the use of the CIBN Practice Licence;
  
• *Embrace low cost, but effective technology-based platforms such as social network media to further engage and communicate more seamlessly with all members and various stakeholders; and
  
• *Introduce a Quality Assurance Program, Member Service and Complaints’ Desk and Members Satisfaction Surveys respectively;
  
• *Improvements in Members Welfare.

6.  Education

Some of the key initiatives to be put in place in the area of education include;

• *Take off of the CIBN Banking School at the Bankers House before end of 2012 and the identification of location and commencement of the Banking School permanent site development by December 2013. We will also take steps to explore possibilities of making the CIBN or the Banking School become a degree awarding Institution in the future;
  
• *Actualise the implementation of the Banking Industry Competency Framework with the buy-in of regulators and all corporate members;
  
• *Implement a new examination structure for take-off by April 2013 based on comprehensive curriculum review;
  
• *Introduce new Certification programs to cater for identified skill gaps and industry demands;
  
• *Reinvigorate life-long learning Continuous Professional Development programs as well as the Faculty Boards and create ‘A’ rated list of local and international resource persons and subject matter experts, to drive curriculum development, learning activities and research on contemporary issues;
  
• *Commence a mentoring programme that will ensure positive role modeling and guidance for young bankers by accomplished banking professionals.
  
• *Create and nurture an industry endorsed certification program for graduate entry level bankers.
   

7. Technology

The Institute clearly needs to step up its game in the use and deployment of technology in its operations. This will be a major effort that will not only make for enhanced operational efficiency but also promote convenience and ease of interaction between its membership and the Institute. In this regard, focus will be on the:

• *Implementation of comprehensive e-learning technologies such as online study platforms, e-library, on-line testing/examinations, on-line marking, e-certificate and other learning delivery systems;
  
• *Implementation of an automated and robust membership database management platform; and
  
• *Implementation of a much more functional and interactive web-site.
   

8. Ethics

The Institute will be nothing without professionalism and active enforcement of standards of discipline and conduct. In these days of recession threatening economies around the world and pressures for more responsible behavior on the part of bankers and banks, it is imperative that we place greater emphasis on this aspect of the Institute’s mandate.

Accordingly, we will undertake:

• *International benchmarking of standards of Ethics and Corporate Governance with support from reputable international organizations such as IFC, AMSCO, UNDP, DFID and GBEStB and undertake a review of our own structures in this area;
• *Take steps to reinforce CIBN’s role as a Self-Regulatory Organisation and rebuild better image for Banks and Banking practitioners.
   

9. Research

I recognize the need for the Institute to strengthen its research capabilities as a prerequisite for the huge boost that we plan for our policy advocacy and educational development roles during this tenure. 

Toward this end, the Institute will aggressively support research into specific areas of interest and relevance through request for research proposals that meet funding eligibility criteria to be determined soon. The results from these research activities will provide enlightenment and contribute significantly to the Institute and Industry’s banking knowledge repository. More than these, it will also serve as a boost to the voice of the Institute in policy discuss and advocacy.

The Institute will also develop an “Occasional Paper” series. This platform will generate and disseminate valuable research-based contributions in defined areas of interest. The contributions received through this publication will not only enrich and make more robust the Institute’s research activities but serve as a guiding platform for our policy positions on major issues from time to time. The series will be widely distributed among the membership and also to other key local and international constituencies.

CIBN STAFF AND THE NATIONAL SECRETARIAT 

CIBN can boast of a dedicated and committed workforce. I appreciate you all for your service and diligence. To promote increased productivity and acquisition of new skill set and knowledge, special capacity building initiatives will be put in place for all staff. In line with the ongoing human capital restructuring programme, some new management staff with different skill set required to break new grounds will be recruited within the next six months. Contemporary performance management systems needed to encourage greater level of efficiency and creativity will be fully implemented while the working environment will be modernized by the end of 2012. 

CONCLUSION 
In conclusion, and on behalf of all my colleagues on the Governing Council, we commit to serve you with our time, talent and treasure. We welcome your continuous guidance, suggestions, constructive criticisms, cooperation and general support in our quest to continue building a professional banking Institute that is poised to be a world leader on a sustainable basis.
 

This is what we desire and deserve and we will make it happen with your support and by the grace of God.
 

Thank you very much.
 

Segun Aina, OFR, FCIB
17^th President and Chairman of Council, Chartered Institute of Bankers of Nigeria, Saturday, 19th May 2012.