Superstar artiste, D’Banj presented a N1 million cheque to the first winner of the weekly draw organized by the CREAM Platform in partnership with Access Bank.

D’Banj, who celebrated his birthday on Saturday, 9 June, 2018, presented the cheque to Joseph Jimbo Ekomobong, a mixologist who works in a bar in Lagos.

The Creative, Reality, Entertainment, Arts, Music (CREAM) Platform recently partnered with Access Bank to reward 10 lucky winners with N1 million over the next 20 weeks.

When asked how he felt about winning the prize, Joseph said: “When I was contacted that I won, I thought it was a normal scam. I always hear that people got lucky and won things like this, but it has never happened to me. I didn’t know I would become a millionaire all of a sudden.”

He had the option of starting a business and getting mentorship opportunity by CREAM, or taking home N1 million – he opted for the latter.

Joseph was also given the chance to pick the second week’s winner. He clicked on the draw button and the next N1 million lucky winner was chosen.

Speaking at the event, Chidinma Adingwupu, Corporate Communications, Access Bank said “We will continue to support the arts, music and the creative industry in general. We encourage every talented individual to take advantage of this partnership between Access Bank and CREAM platform to make their dreams come true.”

Launched by D’Banj in August 2016, the CREAM Platform currently has over 3.5 million subscribers. The platform which is supported by Access Bank has nurtured and promoted countless talents across the creative industry.

To enter for the weekly draw, Access Bank account holders can dial *901*463# on their mobile phones and follow the prompts on their screen. Winners will be announced over the next 20 weeks.

As part of its commitment to empower 1,000 widows across Nigeria, Lipton Yellow Label Tea has partnered with Hope for Life Initiative, God’s Wives, and Women and Orphans Empowerment Organisation on its ‘Reasons to Smile’ campaign.

Designed to support the women through untold hardship and discrimination, the campaign will provide them with the needed opportunities for solutions and financial empowerment by making available necessary care packs and seed funds to start businesses and improve their lives.

Founded by media personality, Bolanle Olukanni, God’s Wives is a Foundation established to protect, empower, and re-dignify widows while also providing training to aid employment. The Foundation is created to also start a conversation about many cultural practices that widows are forced to endure.

The Widows and Orphans Empowerment Organisation (WEWE) is a not-for-profit, Non-Governmental Organisation (NGO) which started out as a Community-Based Organisation (CBO) with the aim of providing scholarships and economic empowerment to orphans and widows in Okigwe, Imo State.

With the intent to empower widows and children to be self-reliant and productive through the Hope for Life Initiative, widows are involved with programmes to acquire new skills, and the organisation also manages seminars at schools in rural communities for the purpose of mentoring the students.

“Knowing the untold hardship and challenges faced by widows, we have the power to lighten their burden and put smiles on their faces either as a corporate imperative or individual responsibility,” said Damilola Dania, Lipton’s Brand Manager, while speaking on the campaign.

“Our purpose is to awaken the world to quality connections that enhance mental wellbeing in society. Partnering with these NGOs on the ‘Reasons to Smile’ campaign enables us to achieve our objectives and make the desired impact on the widows,” she added.

Every pack of Lipton Yellow Label purchased from now till the end of June will serve to support the brand’s effort to empower widows. For updates on Lipton ‘Reasons to Smile’ campaign, follow @LiptonNg on Twitter and Lipton Nigeria on Facebook and Instagram.

See highlight video here: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=dtU_vBp-pTk

Access Bank held its prestigious annual Chief Executive Officer (CEO) Awards over the weekend to celebrate the achievement and commitment of its staff members.

The Afro-infused black tie event which held at the Landmark Event Center in Lagos showcased great performances from the staff themselves, fun set pieces with palm wine cocktails, Pan-African Cuisines and traditional performers with talking drums and men on stilts.

Access Bank’s Group Managing Director/CEO, Herbert Wigwe who commended staff for their zealous work throughout the year, congratulated recipients of the various awards in different categories.

He said, “We do not need magic to change the world, we carry all the power we need inside ourselves already; we have the power to imagine better. You all carry the power within each of you to help us succeed most especially as Access Bank is determined to be Africa’s Gateway to the world. Each year, we move several steps closer to that goal”

Commending and inspiring all present at the event, Wigwe said, “We do it by all of us here today playing individual and collective roles towards the achievement of the Bank’s goal as well as ensuring our customers’ expectations are constantly surpassed. We must all continue to be relentless in our pursuit of excellence.”

In line with the Bank’s vision to be the World’s Most Respected African Bank, the 2018 CEO awards was designed to celebrate employees who have done the extra to enhance the quality of service provided by the Bank and project its image rightly. The award program enhances employee morale, loyalty and increased organizational productivity. The program also supports the Bank’s recruitment campaign, employee engagements and recognizes the efforts of its high performing employees.

The awards ceremony was witnessed by many of the country’s industry leaders, public servants and politicians including President of Dangote Industries, Aliko Dangote, Chairman of Forte Oil, Femi Otedola, Tunde Folawiyo among many others.

Facebook is sharing the first updates from its partnership deal with music companies around the world – an agreement aimed at building a foundation for new musical experiences on the platform.

In a statement released today, Tamara Hrivnak, Head of Music Business Development & Partnerships at Facebook and Fred Beteille, Head of Product, Music & Rights at Facebook said, “We’ve been partnering with music companies around the world to bring music to more experiences on Facebook. Today, we are announcing new ways for people to express themselves with music by testing the ability for people to add music to their personal videos and introducing a new feature, Lip Sync Live.”

Facebook’s mission and music share something special — at their core, they both bring people together, enable stories and emotions to be shared, and forge bonds. Together, Facebook and the music industry are bringing the songs you love into the way you express yourself on Facebook, Instagram, Oculus, and Messenger.

Some of the new updates being introduced today are listed below:

SHARE VIDEOS WITH MUSIC ON FACEBOOK

From weddings and holidays to everyday celebrations, the special moments in life are often ones we associate with music. In patnership with the music industry, Facebook is working to enable people around the world to include music in their videos on the platform, opening up more options for creativity and sharing meaningful memories with friends and family. Currently being tested in several markets, it will soon be available more broadly.

LIP SYNC LIVE
Who doesn’t have fun singing along to their favourite songs with friends? Facebook is rolling out Lip Sync Live, which lets you lip sync to songs from forever favourites like “Welcome to The Jungle” by Guns N Roses to new hits like “Havana” by Camila Cabello. Facebook Live enables you bring people into the moment with you as it happens, and with Lip Sync Live, you can express yourself with music from a variety of genres in real time. So whether you prefer songs like “Happier” by Ed Sheeran or “God’s Plan” by Drake, Lip Sync Live lets you bring friends and family into spontaneous musical moments.

To try it out, choose the “Lip Sync Live” option when starting your Live video. After selecting a song from the song list, you can also add a description and customize your video with masks or a background.

When broadcasting with Lip Sync Live, friends will see the artist and song highlighted on the video and can tap to follow the artist on Facebook.

STAY “TUNED” FOR MORE

Facebook is exploring more ways to bring music to the platform. In the coming months, the company will start testing options for adding the music you love to Facebook Stories, and this is just the beginning. Facebook is looking forward to continuing to work with the music industry to create new ways for people to connect and express themselves through music across our family of apps.

Assets can be found here.

Young Nigerians have called for more inclusion in leadership and governance at the fourth edition of the Nigeria Symposium for Young and Emerging Leaders which took place today at the MUSON Centre, Onikan, Lagos.

Organised by The Future Project, the event featured panel discussions on ‘2019 Elections: Are Nigerian Youth Prepared?’ with Mmanti Umoh, Hamzat Lawal, Ife Adebayo and moderated by Chioma Chuka; ‘Governance and Transparency, an Evaluation of the Current Administration’ with Asuquo Ekpenyong, Hon. Muhammad Sanni Abdullahi, Gbenga Sesan and moderated by Yemi Adamolekun.

Participants were also involved in extensive discussions on ‘Redressing Voters Discuss: My Vote or My Life?’ with panel members such as Ayisha Osori and Aisha Yesufu and moderated by Yemisi Adegoke, including a session on the the ‘Viability of States in Nigeria: Strength or Weakness?’ – moderated by Tolu Adeleru-Balogun with Linus Okorie, Leonard Ebute, Chidi Okereke, and Dr. Oyeleke Ajiboye as discussants.

Themed ‘Shaping New Narratives’, the Symposium brought together leaders of thought and influential personalities in politics, business, advocacy, media, and more – to engage and discuss issues of governance, public policies, and civic engagement.

As an annual knowledge-exchange and mentorship event between present and emerging leaders in government and the public sector to facilitate learning and youth inclusiveness, the annual event provides a platform for young Nigerians to engage public officials on democratic institutions and national development.

Speaking at the event, the chief operating officer of The Future Project, Bukonla Adebakin, explained that the growing need for effective change in Nigeria highlighted the need for a theme that reflects the importance of elections and voters’ engagement in the country, while using the event to create a new sense of direction and renewed commitment to transparency and accountability in governance.

“The 2019 elections can play an important role in creating a better future for Nigeria, especially when we can collectively defeat voter apathy and young Nigerians realise that through elections, we can truly pass the message about true governance and effective leadership. This is an opportunity for inter-generational dialogue and to seek feedback from those who hold the levers of power on the quality of their service and stewardship”.

The event was created to highlight the need to change negative narratives about Nigeria while spotlighting the role of the youth in demanding for better governance and improvement in the system of leadership.

To celebrate Children’s Day, Access Bank Group Managing Director, Herbert Wigwe today visited the Adekunle High School Slum2School kids.

To help inspire the kids to greatness, he stated his belief in the potential of young people and the future of Nigeria, while spending quality time sharing his personal story and values.

There was also a question and answer session where the kids actively engaged him on various topics.

When asked if he came from a privileged background, Herbert answered saying he is from a humble background.

According to him, his parents were civil servants but that did not stop him from striving for excellence. His passion for hard work and excellence saw him getting scholarships to study abroad and eventually becoming the Access Bank GMD.

It was an engaging session where Herbert shared with the students 6 secrets to achieve success.

Don’t allow your circumstances to ever determine your future
Never compromise on excellence, success cannot be achieved without hard work and excellence.
Be hardworking and be good team players.
Imbibe the habit of saving,
Choose your friends and associates carefully, as they are your biggest influence.
Provide solutions always, because success and achievements come only when you solve problems.
Dream big and never stop dreaming.
To wrap up the event, one of the students, Goodluck, a paternal orphan who makes slippers after school hours, decided to make a pair of slippers to gift Herbert, without expecting anything in return. Touched by this gesture, GMD, Herbert Wigwe, got a savings account opened in Goodluck’s name, and credited it with N100,000 to help he and his family, grow their shoe business. Love, laughter, some teary moments, but importantly, hope, characterised Herbert Wigwe’s visit to slum to school. We wish the beautiful children of Slum2school and the world over, a Happy Children’s Day. Let’s educate our kids; let’s give them a legacy.

Popular lifestyle and motherhood blogger, Sisi Yemmie and Motunrayo of the Lagos House Wife blog have joined the growing list of mothers who have happily joined the ongoing Pepsodent WhenIGrowUp challenge on social media. Both moms recently put up videos of their kids saying what they will like to be in the future and the videos have since been attracting emotional comments from their fans and friends.

They will join several other moms and kids at the Pepsodent City Kids Fiesta holding on Sunday, May 27, 2018 at the Airport Hotel, Ikeja. The party will feature fun, exciting games for participants and lots of freebies.

The event is put together by Pepsodent, a leading brand in the oral care category to celebrate kids and encourage them to dream big while driving home the message of good oral hygiene.

For a chance to win free tickets to the event, visit @pepsodentng on Twitter, Instagram & Facebook and participate in the challenge.

Lipton, Nigeria’s leading tea brand, has kicked off the third edition of the ‘Don’t Just Think, Do’ campaign, an initiative to encourage Nigerians to commit towards selfless acts during the holy month of Ramadan and beyond.

With several mosque activations launched across cities in Lagos and Kano states, Lipton is successfully building on the ‘Do More Cities Tour’ executed last year in Oshogbo, Kwara, Abuja, Nasarawa, Kano, Kaduna, Sokoto, Yola, Bauchi, Maiduguri amongst others – with the objective to promote love and care in local communities.

Speaking on the campaign, the brand manager, Lipton Nigeria, Damilola Dania said, “We owe it to one another by going beyond the norm in order to spread love and show care to people all around us. We understand that Ramadan is meant for the Muslim community, but the reason for the celebration represents a personal mission to help the needy, say a prayer for the weak and defenseless, and actually take action on the good deeds that we all think about – which Lipton is asking that we go out and do in any way we can”.

The third edition of the campaign will focus on providing support for widows across the country, as Lipton will be empowering over 1000 widows during this period with grants and care packs.

”We want to say a big thank you to Lipton for this thoughtful treat, may Allah in this holy month of Ramadan increase and bless you in all your endeavors and lead you to the path of continued success and prosperity,” says the Imam of Lagos state secretariat mosque, Abdul-Gafar Abdul-Hakeem during the mosque activation at the Alausa Central Mosque, Ikeja, Lagos.

Lipton started the campaign in 2016 with ‘Think Less Do More’, rewarding people in various communities and commending them for their good deeds and commitment to serving humanity.

As part of its commitment and ongoing investment in Africa, Facebook today unveiled NG_Hub in Lagos, Nigeria – its first flagship community hub space in Africa, in partnership with CcHub. In a week-long celebration which will bring together developers, start-ups, and the wider tech community across Lagos and Nigeria, the launch will showcase the new multi-faceted space which aims to bring together communities to collaborate, learn, and exchange ideas.
With creativity and excellence existing across all of Nigeria, Facebook also announced partnerships with seven other hubs across the country including in Abuja (Ventures Platform), Jos (nHub), Kaduna (Colab Hub), Kano (DI Hub), Uyo (Start Innovation Hub), Enugu (Roar Hub) and Port Harcourt (Ken Saro Wiwa Hub). These will serve as centres of excellence and will feature dedicated Facebook spaces, where many of Facebook’s training sessions will take place, and a space where creatives and developers can book to help them advance their skills.
Featuring bespoke works of art from local artists in Nigeria, the NG_Hub space, which includes workspaces, meeting rooms, a games and chill out room, an event space and a well catered café, will also be the focal point for a number of training programmes. Aimed at attracting the best talent and driving innovation in Nigeria’s tech ecosystem, these are all designed to equip Nigerian SMEs, tech entrepreneurs and the next generation of leaders to better understand and utilise the power of digital tools for economic growth. Training programmes include:
The Fb Start Accelerator programme – a research and mentorship-driven programme aimed at empowering start-ups and students with technical & business support and funding to optimize their product for growth – focused on those building solutions using advanced technology, with a focus on Artificial Intelligence (AI), Machine Learning, Augmented Reality (AR) and Virtual Reality (VR).
Digify Pro Nigeria – a two-month intensive boot camp where 20 aspiring digital professionals will learn what it takes to have a career in digital marketing. The programme is designed to fit the specific needs of industry, covering a range of topics including community management, content and e-mail marketing, brand online reputation management, UX design and more.
Boost Your Business – Made especially for micro, small and medium sized businesses owners, Boost Your Business is a one-day training that teaches digital marketing for business growth.
#SheMeansBusiness – the first to launch on the continent, #SheMeansBusiness is a one-day training workshop and networking experience for female entrepreneurs, offering a mix of business and digital marketing training for women led businesses, along with additional opportunities to network with fellow female entrepreneurs.

Ime Archibong, Facebook’s Vice President of Partnerships said: “Technology provides expansive opportunities to engage young, creative and resourceful Nigerians, especially in delivering solutions to challenges across communities here in Nigeria. Our mission is to build community and bring the world closer together, NG_Hub provides that physical space that will serve as a centre of learning and skills development in Lagos, and I’m excited about the possibilities that this will create.”
Commenting on the partnership Bosun Tijani, Founder/CEO of CcHub, added: “Our aim has always been to provide a viable platform for creatives and innovators to express their talent and create solutions to the myriad of social and economic challenges faced by countries across the continent. Partnering with Facebook on NG_Hub enables us to achieve our objectives at scale and make the desired impact in the tech ecosystem here in Lagos.”
As part of a week-long of celebrations, Facebook will host a number of events from May 21 – 25, 2018 aimed at engaging the different communities in Lagos, and across Nigeria. This includes:
Community roundtable – aimed at bringing together Community Groups from across Lagos
DevC meetup – with Nigeria being home to the largest number of Developer Circles across Sub-Saharan Africa (over 8,800), this event will bring together DevC members in an afternoon of networking
VC & Policy Roundtable – aimed at spearheading vital conversations and helping to bridge the gap between tech entrepreneurs and VCs and policy makers in Nigeria
She Means Business/Women in Tech – a special SheMeansBusiness training offered especially for female entrepreneurs working in Lagos’ technology ecosystem
SMB Boost Your Business Training – a four-hour training session for SMBs aimed at equipping them with vital digital skills to help grow their businesses
Facebook and Instagram for Creatives – an inspirational hands-on session led by Creative Shop for Creatives building for Facebook and Instagram
Fintech SMB Training – a training session for SMBs in Fintech

“The NG_Hub highlights our ongoing commitment to supporting local talent in Nigeria. We’re delighted to be partnering with CcHub here in Lagos, as well as with many other hubs across Nigeria to deepen our engagement, increase skills development and support the next set of innovators, tech entrepreneurs, start-ups, and others in our collective bid to change the face of technology and grow the economy,” said Ebele Okobi, Director of Public Policy, Africa.

The fourth edition of the Nigeria Symposium for Young and Emerging Leaders, organised by The Future Project (TFP), will hold on Thursday, 31 May, 2018 at the Muson Centre, Onikan, Lagos.

The event will feature young and inspired leaders such as Aisha Yesufu, co-convener of Bring Back Our Girls Group; Asuquo Ekpenyong, commissioner of finance, Cross River State; Mark Okoye, commissioner for economic planning and budget, Anambra State; Ife Adebayo, special assistant to the vice president on innovation and entrepreneurship; Samson Itodo, executive director, Youth Initiative for Advocacy, Growth and Advancement, among others.

Themed ‘Shaping New Narratives’, the Symposium will bring together leaders and influential personalities in politics, business, advocacy, media, and more – to engage and discuss issues of governance, public policies, and civic engagement.

As an annual knowledge-exchange and mentorship event between present and emerging leaders in government and the public sector to facilitate learning and youth inclusiveness, the event provides a platform for young Nigerians to engage public officials on democratic institutions and national development.

According to the chief operating officer, The Future Project, Bukonla Adebakin, the Symposium is intended to drive the need to change negative narratives about Nigeria while highlighting the role of the youth in demanding for better governance and improvement in the system of leadership.

“In strengthening leadership and citizen participation, it is important that we provide platforms to aid true transformation and establish democratic values while developing active and empowered citizens. With the theme ‘Shaping New Narrative’, we intend to highlight the crucial role of citizens in imperatives of open governance,” Adebakin said.

Speakers who have headlined the Symposium include Dr. Ngozi Okonjo-Iweala, former minister of finance; Dr. Oby Ezekwesili, former minister of education; Mallam Bolaji Abdullahi, former minister of youth and development, Peter Obi, former governor of Anambra and Donald Duke, former governor of Cross River, among others.

The Future Project has a mandate to build empowered citizens across Africa through inclusive enterprise and active citizenship.

To register, visit http://bit.ly/TFP-Symposium-2018