FirstBank Throws Weight Behind 28th edition of the All Africa Public Relations Conference, APRA 2016

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First Bank of Nigeria Limited, a subsidiary of FBN Holdings Plc and Nigeria’s most valuable bank brand, has thrown its weight behind 28th edition of the All Africa Public Relations Conference, APRA Calabar 2016. The event themed “Leapfrogging Africa: The Role of Public Relations”” will convene over 500 practitioners in public relations, eminent media influencers, advertising, government officials, entrepreneurs, and other marketing communications professionals from across the African Continent and beyond to proffer resolutions to the many challenges facing the practice of public relations in the African continent. APRA Calabar 2016 is scheduled for May 24 – 27, 2016, at the Calabar International Convention Centre (CICC), Cross River State.

The Conference which is endorsed by the African Union Commission (AUC), will be declared open by the President and Commander-in-Chief of the Armed Forces, Federal Republic of Nigeria, President Muhammadu Buhari, while Chief Olusegun Obasanjo, former President of Nigeria will be the Chairman of the Conference opening ceremony alongside a host of African Heads of Government, diplomats and captains of industry, eminent media influencers and stakeholders across the African sub-Region and the world. APRA Calabar 2016 will parade an array of renowned speakers, including His Excellency Erastus Mwencha, the Deputy Chairperson of the African Union Commission, Alhaji Aliko Dangote, Chairman, Dangote Group, Bart de Vries, the President of International Public Relations Association (IPRA), and Maxim Behar, President International Communications Consultancy Organisation (ICCO).
According to the Group Head, Marketing and Corporate Communications, Mrs. Folake Ani-Mumuney, FirstBank would continue to support initiatives that will create opportunities for the advancement of the African continent. “We will continue to drive the discourse on development of our continent to place Africa on the same pedestal with industrialized economies”, she added.
African Public Relations Association (APRA) is a non-governmental, non-political and non-profit making professional association organised with the aim of creating an enabling professional environment for accurate perception, goodwill and understanding of necessary and effective performance of Public Relations practice in Africa. Last year, FirstBank’s Group Head, Marketing and Corporate Communications, Mrs. Folake Ani-Mumuney headlined a workshop on “Effective Internal Communications/Employee Branding” at the APRA 2015 conference which held in Yaoundé.
About FirstBank
First Bank of Nigeria Limited, a subsidiary of FBN Holdings Plc, is Nigeria’s leading financial services institution by total assets and gross earnings and one of the largest corporate and retail banking financial institutions in sub-Saharan Africa (excluding South Africa). Since its establishment in 1894, the Bank has consistently built relationships with customers focusing on fundamentals of good corporate governance, strong liquidity, risk management and strong capitalization.

FirstBank operates an extensive distribution network with over 750 business locations (623 branches, 61 quick service points and 69 cash centers/agencies), over 2,600 ATM’s and over 10 million customer accounts. The Bank provides a comprehensive range of financial services and has international presence through its subsidiaries, FBN Bank (UK) Limited in London and Paris, FBNBank DR Congo, FBNBank Ghana, FBNBank Gambia, FBNBank Guinea, FBNBank Sierra-Leone and FBNBank Senegal as well as its Representative Offices in Johannesburg, Beijing and Abu Dhabi.

FirstBank is the recipient of many awards. The Bank has been named “The Best Bank Brand in Nigeria” five times in a row – 2011, 2012, 2013, 2014 and 2015 – by the globally renowned “The Banker Magazine” of the Financial Times Group. FirstBank’s brand purpose is to always put its stakeholders, customers and partners at the heart of its business, even as it is poised to standardize customer experience and excellence in financial solutions across Sub Saharan Africa, in consonance with its brand vision “To be the partner of first choice in building your future”. The brand promise is to always deliver the ultimate “gold standard” of value and excellence. This commitment is anchored on the FirstBank’s inherent values of passion, partnership and people, to position its customers first in every respect.

For three consecutive years, 2012, 2013 and 2014, FirstBank was named the “Best Retail Bank in Nigeria” by the Asian Banker International Excellence in Retail Financial Services Awards. Other recent awards include the “Best Bank in Nigeria” in the Euromoney Awards for Excellence, “Best Bank in West Africa” and “Most Innovative Bank in Africa” in the African Banker Awards, “Best Bank in Nigeria” in the EMEA Finance African Banking Awards for the fourth time, “Best Foreign Exchange Services in Africa” in the EMEA Finance Treasury Services Awards, “Best Banking Group in Nigeria” by World Finance Banking Awards, and “Best Financial Reporting Company” by Africa Investor.