Corporate Comms & PR

Ecobank Day is an annual event where the pan-African bank gives back to the communities it serves. In 2019, a three-year plan was launched to raise awareness about Non-Communicable Diseases, with a focus on cancer in Year 1. BrandComms was asked to help develop a holistic campaign, both for internal and external audiences. The brief was to help fight stigma and encourage lifestyle changes.

In the past Ecobank Day focused on volunteering and donating, but we decided to take a different approach this time. The idea was to create a concept that would inform, educate and inspire. As such, sports events (from walks to zumba classes) were organised across Africa. Anyone could attend – staff and their families, customers, the local community etc. Training sessions were organised ahead of the events to help create a buzz internally. On the day attendees could even get quick health checks (blood pressure check etc) at the event. Internally, staff members were encouraged to share their personal experiences of cancer and other NCDs to help overcome stigma.

Through the sports events Ecobank was able to raise awareness, promote healthy habits and raise funds benefiting local charities. For a detailed breakdown per country, visit the dedicated web page: https://ecobank.com/ecobank-day. The day also attracted a lot of attention amongst national media – television, newspapers and radio. Ecobank is now preparing the second wave of the campaign.

As a partner of the Global Fund to Fight AIDS, TB and Malaria, our client Ecobank attended the Replenishment Conference, hosted by Canada’s Prime Minister Justin Trudeau. We supported Ecobank throughout the conference and created a side event to launch the Ecobank Foundation.

For the launch, we organised a breakfast workshop with a high-level panel discussion (with Coca-Cola’s Head of Sustainability among others on the panel); workshop attendees included CEOs of Comic Relief and (RED). BrandComms also drafted speeches and other official materials to support the Ecobank CEO at the conference. A social media campaign was rolled out to maximise Ecobank’s presence.

We positioned Ecobank as the African corporate game changer, offering a gateway to the continent. In the immediate aftermath of the conference high-level partnerships were established, both with the Foundation and Ecobank.