Two schools, the African Church Model College and Sonmori Comprehensive High School, both in Ifako-Ijaiye area of Lagos State have become the latest beneficiaries of the UBA Foundation, “Read Africa” initiative.
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 senior management staff from the UBA Group.
Students at the school had the privilege of sharing a reading session with Deputy Managing Director, Domestic Bank, UBA, Mr. Apollos Ikpobe who read excerpts from Chinua Achebe’s literally classic “Things Fall Apart” with the students.
Ikpobe, in a motivational speech, told the students that reading is foundation for future success in life and challenged them to read, at least, one book every month, be focused on their studies and aspire for greatness.
Citing from personal experiences growing up, Ikpobe said reading “fuels our imagination and is essential to educational development of all students”.
“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 added.
Also speaking at the occasion, the CEO of UBA Foundation, Ms. Ijeoma Aso, 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 stated.
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 senior executives of the bank and UBAF who also take out time to mentor the students.
The UBA Foundation, which is the corporate social responsibility of the United Bank for Africa, carries out several initiatives in its focus areas of Education, Environment, Economic Empowerment and Special Projects (EEES), aimed at positively impacting on the society and people of Nigeria and Africa.
