Sterling One Foundation has announced the Development Bank of Nigeria as one of the partners for the 2024 Africa Social Impact Summit.
The foundation, which is a co-convener of the summit, disclosed that in a statement issued recently in Lagos.
“With this partnership, DBN joins an impressive list of partners, including private-sector organisations, international development organisations, public-sector bodies, and diplomatic organisations,” it stated.
Established in 2014, the DBN is a wholesale finance institution that focuses on addressing the financing challenges facing micro, small, and medium-scale enterprises in Nigeria through the provision of financing and partial credit guarantees to eligible financial intermediaries.
The Managing Director/Chief Executive Officer of DBN, Dr Tony Okpanachi, explained that the bank had been a part of the Africa Social Impact Summit right from its inception, with its chief economist as one of its panellists, because it saw value in the summit’s drive for increased impact investments to scale sustainable solutions.
“We are constantly looking to reach more enterprises building impactful solutions that address Nigeria’s challenges and this summit presents a good opportunity to engage them and offer them ways to scale and grow,” he said.
The CEO of Sterling One Foundation, Mrs Olapeju Ibekwe, expressed delight at partnering with DBN, stating that the impact of DBN’s work and the insights it gained from serving Nigeria’s vibrant MSMEs space were worth learning from.
She also alluded to the opportunity the partnership provided for summit attendees to access credit for the impact-focused solutions they are developing.