The 2023 Access Bank UNICEF Polo Tournament, which ended at the weekend, left smiles on the faces of many of the participants, including underpriviled chidren, who got a N10 million donation from the sponsoring bank.
With the gladiators still trying to catch their breadth after an action-packed polo fiesta, the bank also unveiled new school uniforms for the underprivileged children, who were the main beneficiaries of the competition.
The 2023 Access Bank/UNICEF Charity Shield polo tourney also climaxed in exciting triumphs for Access Bank and Abuja YBL polo teams, as they won the Charity Shield and Usman Dantata Cup respectively.
The Charity Shield began in 2003 as a platform to support local charity organisations in Kaduna and since 2006 this humanitarian effort has been geared exclusively towards UNICEF intervention projects for orphans and vulnerable children in Kaduna State.
In 2008, the Charity Shield received a major boost when Access Bank Group agreed to a multi-year sponsorship deal, making the tournament one of the best-supported charity events in the history of Nigerian sports.
Income generated from these cooperatives is used to meet the needs of the children in their care, including providing healthcare and education supplies.
Kaduna State Deputy Governor, Hadiza Sabuwa Balarabe, who unveiled the newly designed uniforms and shoes for the pupils of the Access Bank Fifth Chukker Maraban Jos Primary School in Kaduna, urged parents to make good use of the ultra modern educational facility targeted at removing millions of out of school children from the streets to give them a brighter future.
“I call on parents, particularly mothers, to stop their children from street trading, begging and other exploitative vices in rural and urban areas across the state for their education in this school funded by the Charity Shield Polo partners,” Balarabe, pleaded as the excited students danced to the admiration of dignitaries.
Access Bank Managing Director, Roosevelt Ogbonna, who promised the children more amenities, said the bank’s sponsorship is a reflection of its commitment to enriching the lives of Nigerians and an acknowledgement of the impact the UNICEF Charity Shield initiative has had on the lives of the orphaned and vulnerable children in Kaduna State and its environment.
He asaid that the donation presented to UNICEF officials at the Fifth Chukker Polo and Country Club, Kaduna, reaffirmed the bank’s commitment to promotion of education in the state and support for UNICEF’s campaign against HIV/AIDS pandemic among Nigerian children.
“We have been working in Kaduna in collaboration with Access Bank Group and Fifth Chukker Polo & Country Resort to elevate quality of lives. We need to do a lot more in support of these orphans and vulnerable children to enable them to look forward to a better tomorrow,” UNICEF’s Chief of Field Office, Kaduna, Dr. Gerrida Birukila, who received the donation stated.
In the final games, Team Access Bank defeated Jos Malcomines team to win the Charity Shield, just after YBL team from Abuja had outpaced Katsina Max Air to clinch the Usman Dantata Cup.
