Mary Akpobome @ 50 Launches NGO For Girls Education

By Kayode Adeyemo/LAGOS/A successful banker and elegant celebrity, Mary Akpobome recently launched a charity girl care organization as parts of the activities to mark her 50th year’s birthday. The golden jubilee celebration which took place at The Civic Center, Victoria Island, Lagos gave birth to The Purple Girl Foundation; a non-government organization, NGO initiated to be the leading platform for the support and advocate quality access for girl child education.

Mrs Akpobome urged her rich friends and colleagues present at the celebration of her 50th birthday to donate towards her cause in educating more girl-child in Nigeria.

She noted that as at 2014, Nigeria ranked top in the list of countries with highest rates of out of school girls with 5.5 million girls and this number which has increased spurred her decision to help educate the girl child as she turned 50.

The banker stressed that the primary focus of her NGO is giving young girls from underprivileged backgrounds, who struggle amidst various disadvantages a chance to improve their lot through educational support.

Mrs Akpobome disclosed that 62 girls from primary, secondary and tertiary schools have been nominated as beneficiaries of the programmes by the Purple Girl Foundation.

To help her new NGO succeed, Mrs Akpobome has dragged her husband, Alibaba Akpobome and Nigerian actor, Richard Mofe Damijo, RMD into the governing board of the NGO.

The governing board, which was inaugurated before her 50th birthday were announced on Wednesday, July 11, during Mary’s birthday ceremony.

Alibaba and RMD are joined in the governing board by retired Assistant Inspector of Police, Tunji Alapini, Olajumoke Adenowo, Ini Abimbola, Charles Udoh Bassey and Gloria Nash while Margaret Onyema-Orakwusi leads the board as its chairman.

Born July 11, 1968, to Ben and Janet Bassey Udoh in Efa, Akwa Ibom State of Nigeria, Mary Akpobome has a successful career in banking sector as an Executive Director of Heritage Bank

Mary Akpobome attended Qua Iboe Mission Secondary School in Etinan, Akwa Ibom State. She proceeded to the University of Benin where she studied Theatre Arts and graduated in 1991. She has a second degree (MBA) in Business Administration

Mrs Akpobome is also an alumnus of the prestigious INSEAD and INSEAD Business School, Orchestrating Winning Performance (IMD), Lausanne, Switzerland and the Lagos Business School (LBS). She is a member of the Institute of Directors (IOD), a fellow of the Institute of Credit Administration (ICA). She is also a fellow of the Chartered Institute of Bankers (CIBN).

Mary Akpobome started her over twenty (20) years banking career in Citizens International Bank where she spent eight (8) years carving a niche in Customer Services, Customer Care, and Relationship Management. She joined the former Platinum Bank Limited in 2000 as a Relationship Manager in the Personal Banking Group, however, due to her superlative business results; Mrs Akpobome was appointed the first Branch Business Manager of Platinum Bank’s Victoria Island 2 Branch where she won the MD/CEO’s award for Most Outstanding Bank.

In 2003, she was promoted to the position of Assistant Vice President and appointed the Regional Director of Lagos Island Region. She was a Senior Vice President responsible for the Commercial Banking Business in the Lagos Island Business Area. She had a stint with Bank PHB (now Keystone Bank)

Mary Akpobome is a well-decorated banking veteran with several medals under her belt including the prestigious Certificate of Recognition for her leadership and contribution to the advancement of Nigeria by Nigeria Professional International (NIPRO).

Mary Akpobome is deeply passionate about bettering the lives of the needy. This is a passion that drove her to start a charity together with some of her colleagues in Bank PHB (now Keystone bank). The registered charity, “Ladies for the Needy”, since its existence, has brought comfort to the lives of orphans and disadvantaged children in Lagos, Nigeria’s commercial city specifically the Arrow of God Orphanage and Heart of Gold Hospice.