Bank of Palestine (BoP) won first place as the largest contributor to Corporate Social Responsible projects among Palestinian banks in 2011 for its contribution of $1.5 million in 2010, which is equivalent to 5% of its net profit. The announcement was made during the Second Banking Forum for Corporate Social Responsibility (CSR), which was organized by the Association of Banks in Palestine (ABP) at the Movenpick Hotel- Ramallah on 12.12.2011. The award was received by Thaer Hamayel, Head of Public Relations and Marketing at BoP.
During the conference, Hamayel listed a number of initiatives and projects that BoP sponsored during the last two years. These included building family centers in Gaza after the last war, adopting the “Fajr” project to adopt orphans in Gaza, "Zamalah"- a project to develop the caliber of Palestinian university professors, and also partnering with UNICEF to help relieve the famine in Somalia.
Hashim Shawa, Chairman and General Manager of BoP, noted that CSR is a core principle in the Bank's efforts to drive economic development forward. BoP's efforts to be a sustainable bank through its commitment to dedicating 5% of its net profit towards CSR confirm its belief that true progress begins with social and economic development on a community level. In 2010 alone, BoP's CSR budget reached around $1.5 million and covered the following sectors: youth and sports, education, health, arts, culture, tourism and other humanitarian work. BoP's contribution to CSR exceeds the global average rate provided by companies (about 2%). In 2011, and due to BoP's continued growth, the bank’s CSR contribution is expected to reach at least $1.7 million.
Shawa stressed that this responsibility is not a financial burden, but a voluntary commitment of the bank towards the country, and encouraged the Palestinian private sector to join efforts and work towards set goals in order to to bring about the desired change of raising the living standards of our people.