Union Bank floats savings scheme to support 11 northern states

The Union Bank of Nigeria PLC on Thursday floated a savings scheme that would help support the economic transformation and growth of the 11 states in northern region of the country.

The scheme tagged ‘UnionKorrect-Dai-Dai’ targets about 30,000 indigent people in each of the 11 states of the region to help redress the economic hardship in the area, especially among low income earners.

The chairman of the initiative, Arasaratnam Sheahan, said in Gombe State at the official launching of the scheme, that it was conceived as a strategic initiative to transform the people’s saving culture.

The states expected to benefit from the scheme are Gombe, Adamawa, Bauchi, Borno, Sokoto, Taraba, Jigawa, Kebbi, Katsina, Gombe and Zamfara.

“The scheme will help the common man to save at least N1, 000 per month with the assurance of earning cash benefits from the saving every quarter,” Mr. Sheahan explained.

He said the first phase of the scheme, which would last for two years, has an open period of six months from the time of official launching for over 900 beneficiaries to enrol expected to receive cash benefits within the period of the programme.

The branch manager of Union Bank, Gombe branch, Fatai Baruwa, said the programme was coming at the right time when people were facing hardship and difficult times as a result the current economic down turn.

Mr. Baruwa said the Union Bank was aiming at providing services geared towards building not only the economic strength of Nigeria’s northern region, but also to bring about economic benefits to the growth of the country at large.

All the states of the federation on Wednesday lamented the negative impact of the economic crunch of the states, as they asked the federal government to expedite action on the approval of a new revenue sharing formula to boost the monthly revenue earnings of the states.