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The mainstreaming of sustainability in the business operations of Access Bank Plc has continued to gain recognition locally and internationally. The bank was declared the overall best company in Corporate Social Responsibility (CSR) and Sustainability in Nigeria for the year 2019 by TruCSR, a Lagos-based organisation that is promoting CSR and sustainability in Africa.

The ranking, published in Forbes Africa, is based on an impact assessment of 910 organisations operating in Nigeria over the last 13 years. According to TruCSR, Access Bank’s participation in impactful national projects, its investments in CSR and sustainability, and the international recognitions and awards received by the bank during the review period determined its overall ranking in the impact assessments.  

Access Bank has said it dedicates a minimum of one per cent of its profit-before-tax to sustainability. Several of the bank's high impact multi-billion initiatives have been designed to improve health outcomes in Nigeria, support skills development for women and the youth, address climate change mitigation and adaption efforts, among other areas. Access Bank's CSR priority areas include healthcare, education, environment, entrepreneurship, arts, sport and social welfare.

The bank has a growing portfolio of credit facilities, which it invests to help in scaling up small and medium-scale enterprises (SMEs) as well as various projects to enhance environment protection and social development in Nigeria and across Africa.

“Over the years we have recorded outstanding results by undertaking several initiatives across the country, and we are deeply honoured to be recognized as the overall best company in Corporate Social Responsibility (CSR) and Sustainability,” said the Head of Sustainability at Access Bank, Omobolanle Victor-Laniyan.

In addition to the recognition by TruCSR, Access Bank, late last year, won in the awards categories for Best Bank in Nigeria and Best Product Launch (Pan Africa) at the 2019 Europe, Middle East and Africa (EMEA) Finance Awards, which was organised in London. The bank was also declared Bank of the Year Nigeria at The Banker's Awards, also in London.