On Wednesday 18/03/2015, Bank of Palestine celebrated the opening of its new office in Asira Al-Shamaliya in Nablus Governorate; a grand celebration was held in the presence of Mr. Hashim Shawa, Bank of Palestine’s Chairman and General Manager, Major General Akram Rjoub, Governor of Nablus, Mr. Nasser Jawabra, Mayor of Asira Al-Shamaliya’s Municipality, Mr. Abdullah Al-Ghanim and Mr. Maher Farah, members in Bank of Palestine's Board of Directors, Mr. Hani Salah, Bank's Assistant General Manager, Mr. Eyad Nassar, representative of Palestinian Monetary Authority, and a number of representatives of official institutions and the private sector.
With the opening of its new office in Asira Al-Shamaliya, the number of Bank of Palestine’s branches becomes 54 branches and offices located across the country, equipped with comprehensive financial and banking services to reach the public and the customers with high quality and distinctive performance.
Mr. Nasser Jawabra, Mayor of Asira Al-Shamaliya’s Municipality, welcomed the attendance; he praised the Bank’s efforts in order to have a presence in Asira; he indicated the importance of investing the Palestinian capital inside of Palestine, to contribute to growth and production. Jawabra added that Bank of Palestine is an essential national financial institution, with its capital and social and economic contributions, which made the town interested to host one of its branches. He also indicated the importance of supporting the President throughout his political journey in order to achieve the hopes of the Palestinian people.
Mr. Hashim Shawa, Bank of Palestine’s Chairman and General Manager, welcomed the attendance and expressed his contentment in this occasion and his pride to have the Bank present Asira Al-Shamaliya, which is considered a distinct village on the national level. He indicated that the number of Bank’s branches reached 54 branches and offices, to coincide with the Bank’s establishment 54 years ago by his late grandfather, Hajj Hashim Atta Shawa.
Shawa revealed the Bank’s journey since it was established in 1961, in addition to the challenges it faced in developing and expanding; he indicated that the Bank plans to open other branches in other Palestinian areas, in spite of the difficult political and economic conditions present in Palestine, for the Bank to maintain its first place on the national level to own the largest banking network in Palestine, with 54 branches and offices and more than 120 ATMs present in all governorates of Palestine. He adds that this confirms the Bank's commitment to continue building and investing in Palestine and deliver its banking services to the customers wherever they are present.
Shawa also listed a group of reasons that enhanced the Bank's various services and programs which contributed to the development of the Palestinian banking sector, most importantly the establishment of a special unit to support small, medium and micro small enterprises, due to their effective role in the advancement of our Palestinian economy and the creation of new employment opportunities dedicated to recent university graduates. He adds that Bank of Palestine is the second largest employer to recent graduates in Palestine, as it employed more than 700 graduates during the past five years, amounting to 1300 Bank employees who serve more than 700,000 Palestinian customers.
Major General Akram Rjoub, Governor of Nablus, praised the Bank’s efforts to stimulate the Palestinian economy and its social contributions in various field; he gave a special welcome to Mr. Abdullah Al-Ghanim who joined from Kuwait, which represents and important message of solidarity of Arabs and Arab capital that is strongly present in Palestine, as he indicated that Palestinian economy is going through difficult conditions and is in need of unity of all institutions and private sector to overcome these difficulties. Rjoub added that the Palestinian people have all the qualifications needed to establish a Palestinian state despite Israel’s tyranny and intransigence; he added that resistance to occupation can be through building educational and economic institutions, and through hard work and pursuing the idea of self-reliance, in addition to building small enterprises that will gradually grow to enhance economic growth and create employment opportunities. Rjoub concluded his speech by greeting Bank of Palestine for its efforts to build a national economy.
Mr. Eyad Nassar, Head of Bank’s Audit Section in Palestinian Monetary Authority and its representative, praised Bank of Palestine’s performance and the achievement of financial indicators, adding that the cooperation between the Bank and the Palestinian Monetary Authority enabled the Bank to increase the number of its branches to become a distinctive banking institution on the national level.