Bank of Palestine and its subsidiary companies launched a campaign to support Palestinian women and promote their participation in economic and social life. This initiatives comes as part of the bank’s belief in the ability of women to lead and overcome several life obstacles. The campaign falls under the umbrella of the Felestineya program, and its launch coincides with the month that is especially designated for women all around the world in celebration of their achievements. Through this campaign, the bank seeks to highlight the unique characteristics and skills of women from leadership, strength, capacity, creativity, perseverance and ability to succeed. The selection process involved women from different backgrounds, geographical locations, age groups and fields, and included a student, a mother, an employee, an entrepreneur, a business women, a football player and a mechanical engineer. The bank believes that despite the difficult political and economic circumstances confronted by Palestinian women, yet they remain true to their nature as being leaders, artists and creative beings, and inspire many with their ability to manage and overcome crisis and tribulations.
Mr. Hashim Al Shawa, the Chairman of the Bank of Palestine Group, congratulated Palestinian women during their month, which includes the celebration of the International Women’s Day on 8 March and Mother’s Day on 21 March. He also mentioned the launch of the Felestineya Program in 2014, which is a comprehensive program in terms of the awareness, financial, counseling and non-financial services it provides, as well as putting women in contact with programs and opportunities, mentors and counselors, and financial and banking products and services that respond to their needs, through training and individual consultation from a specialized team.
Al Shawa added that through the Felestineya Program, the bank managed to acquire a great experience in terms of understanding the needs of Palestinian women, and consequently respond to them through custom-made banking services, including the establishment of a savings account from mothers to their children, collateral free loans for women business owners, personal and business loans with gold as collateral, and several other benefits provided to women when they obtain the bank’s products and services.
Mr. Rushdi Ghalayini, the General Manager of Bank of Palestine, said that through this campaign, the bank aims to encourage Palestinian women to work and develop themselves, which will in turn reflect positively on their families and the development of the Palestinian society and economy at large. He added that Palestinian women form part of the success stories within our companies and organizations, stressing the fact that wherever women are missing, creativity is absent. Ghalyini also added that the positive characteristics of all the women who participated were not given to them as a form of encouragement, but were rather real and proven. Women who completed the Felestineya Program who were characterized as being creative, proved their creativity, and those who were praised for their leadership skills actually managed their business with full force and were up to the responsibility, and those who fought to prove themselves were actually called fighters. Then there was the entrepreneur, the leader, and other attributes given to Palestinian women. In the end, Ghalayini stressed that these qualities are not only attributed to women who participated in the campaign, but to all Palestinian women.
The aforementioned activities go together with non-financial consulting services to achieve financial inclusion, because the services provided by the bank should complete the success path of all Palestinian women and assist them in selecting the appropriate banking and investment products that respond to their needs through participation in specialized training programs to start their own ventures, and several programs that aim to guide them and connect them with mentors, potential clients and suppliers, and provide them with opportunities in various fields.
The campaign featured huge billboards that were placed at the entrances of main cities, and uploaded on Bank of Palestine’s website and social media pages, and on the Felestineya Program page, and through short media messages (SMS). The bank also prepared a special online link for women who wish to join the Felestineya Program for free at http://www.felestineya.ps/home/form, and dedicated a daily prize of $100 to encourage women to join. The campaign impressed several people who followed the campaigns and activities of the program.