In recognition of the significant role played by its volunteers as part of the bank’s corporate social responsibility program “Together”, the bank has recently honored its employees who have participated in a range of volunteering activities and initiatives, throughout the past year.
The honoring ceremony took place at the bank’s head office building and was attended by Arab Bank’s Chief Executive Officer, Mr. Nemeh Sabbagh and Deputy Chief Executive Officer, Miss Randa Sadik in addition to several department heads and employees. This annual ceremony comes in recognition of Arab Bank’s employees who have volunteered their time and efforts during the year in various activities and initiatives aimed at serving the local community in many areas, including health, poverty alleviation, education, orphan support and environmental protection.
In his opening speech at the ceremony, Mr. Sabbagh expressed his pride and appreciation of the outstanding efforts exerted by the bank’s volunteers throughout the past year, stating: “Community support and volunteering are integral part of the bank’s culture. Our employees are always encouraged to participate in volunteering activities and initiatives stemming from the bank’s sustainability strategy which aims at optimizing the bank’s economic, social, and environmental impact and contributing to building a well-integrated volunteering framework in the community.”
Mr. Sabbagh added: “The constant increase in the number and hours of volunteering activities, reflects our employees’ deep understanding of the value of volunteering and their passion towards making a meaningful positive change in their community. It also embodies their true loyalty to their organization and society.”
Commenting on the participation of the bank’s employees in the program during 2018, Mr. Tareq Haj Hasan, Senior Vice President, Head of Branding at Arab Bank said: “The number of community initiatives carried out by the bank’s volunteers over the past year reached 61 initiatives, implemented by 359 employees from various departments, whilst the number of volunteers’ participations reached 1001.” He further added: “The total number of beneficiaries from the community initiatives and activities supported by the bank during the past year, as part of its sustainability efforts, has reached nearly 236,000 beneficiaries across the Kingdom.”
At the end of the ceremony, the employees expressed their deep gratitude and appreciation of the recognition they received from the bank which represents an opportunity for them to reaffirm their continued commitment towards supporting their community and contributing towards achieving sustainable development.
It is important to note that the program “Together” is not limited only to employee volunteering, but it also offers the bank’s customers the opportunity to support non-profit organizations that are participating in the program by making donations through the bank’s different channels; including: the internet banking service “Arabi Online” and telephone banking service “Hala Arabi”, in addition to the contributions that could be made at the bank’s branches and ATMs across the Kingdom. Moreover, “Together” Platinum card issued by Arab Bank provides its holders with the opportunity to support non-profit organizations every time the card is used.
Arab Bank adopts a comprehensive sustainability strategy and framework which drive the bank’s constant efforts to support sustainable social, economic and environmental development, working diligently with various stakeholders. One of the main pillars of this strategy is Arab Bank’s corporate social responsibility program “Together”, a multi-dimensional program which aims to develop various aspects of the community through different activities and initiatives contributing to the fields of health, poverty alleviation, environmental protection, education and orphan support.
