By Yakubu LAAH InvestAdvocate
Lagos (INVESTADVOCATE)-Two (2) schools Monday benefitted from the United Bank for Africa Group’s (UBA’s) Foundation “Read Africa” initiative.
This is contained in a Statement Tuesday by Ramon Olanrewaju Nasir, Head, Media of UBA Group and made available to InvestAdvocate in Lagos Nigeria.
“Two schools, the African Church Model College and Sonmori Comprehensive High School, both in Ifako-Ijaiye area of Lagos State, on Monday, became the latest beneficiaries of the UBA Foundation, “Read Africa” initiative,” the Statement affirmed.
The Statement said the ‘Read Africa’ initiative is a UBA Foundation project, aimed at rekindling the reading culture of African youths through the donation of African literary classics to students as well as having mentoring sessions with seniour management staff from the UBA Group.
According to the UBA Group’s Statement, students at the school had the privilege of sharing a reading session with Apollos Ikpobe, Deputy Managing Director (DMD), Domestic Bank, who read excerpts from Chinua Achebe’s literally classic “Things Fall Apart”.
Ikpobe in a motivational speech, told the students that reading is foundation for future success in life and challenged them students to read at least one book every month, “be focused on their studies and aspire for greatness,” he said.
“It is very essential for you to read because it is from reading that you get ideas and principles to move forward in life. The more you read, the more you broaden your horizon and be able to communicate”, he said.
Ijeoma Aso Chief Executive Officer (CEO) of the UBA Foundation who joined Ikpobe to distribute the book ‘Things Fall Apart’ by Chinua Achebe to the students, said reading is the most fundamental skill a person can acquire, and encouraged the youths to take advantage of the “Read Africa” project to widen their vision and enhance their knowledge.
“Surmounting challenges come from what you have read and are exposed to and the only way to succeed is to be intellectually sound. This can only be achieved through reading.” she said.
The ‘Read Africa’, which is in its third year, is an annual programme of the Foundation and it involves donating literature books to secondary schools across the continent. It is anchored by seniour executives of the bank and UBAF who also take out time to mentor the students.
