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Vision |
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Sustainable economic development led by socially
responsible businesses and individuals.
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History |
Growing Businesses Foundation (GBF), commenced activities in October 1999 as a non-governmental, non-profit organization against the backdrop of increasing socio-economic imbalance in Nigeria where issues of national concern bordered around mass poverty, corruption, unemployment, poor public amenities and decreasing educational standards in the formal and informal sectors. GBF was established to respond to these issues from the perspective of corporate and individual social responsibility and to promote sustainable economic development in Nigeria.
View the full "Annual Report and Accounts 2006" (September 2007, 6.7 MB).
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Events |
 Africa Conference,
Bonn,
05-06 November 2005More ...
 WSIS Meeting,
Tunis,
16-18 November 2005 More ...
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Mission |
"To enhance collaboration amongst businesses, non-profit organizations and governments; to promote the healthy economic development of communities and channel resources towards projects with sustainable wealth-generating potential."
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Objectives |
GBF has adopted several institutional objectives built around its central theme of "Investing in the Poor". These may be summarized as follows:
- To demonstrate that small-scale entrepreneurs are creditworthy, with a view to solving two key problems in micro-enterprise: the lack of access to commercial credit for micro-loan programs, and the limited availability of loan funds.
- To establish professionally managed investment vehicles innovative enough to attract significant long-term investment, and create a revenue base to support the Foundation's mission of sustainable wealth generation and economic development.
- To implement such programs that simultaneously empower small-scale businesses and design ways for companies to operate profitably whilst sustainable developing communities.
- To design innovative programs that assists with the institutionalisation & recognition of Micro-finance Institutions (MFIs) and small to medium scale enterprises (SME's) as key players in the financial markets.
- Advocacy: To assist in the creation of an enabling policy and regulatory environment in which sustainable economic development can occur.
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Our Core
Values |
The GBF Board of Trustees formally adopted the Global Sullivan Principles of corporate social responsibility in October 2000. Other than these, the Growing Businesses Foundation is guided by the following core values:
- We believe in the compatibility of business with ethics, of profitability with social responsibility, and in the power of philanthropic individuals and companies to positively impact people's lives.
- We believe that mutually-beneficial relationships can be built through collaboration amongst companies, governments, individuals and communities towards a more equitable and just society that promotes the prosperity of humanity, and in the promotion of business relationships built upon trust and respect for mutual interests.
- We seek to take proper account of social, cultural, ecological and economic sustainability in our world by striking a healthy balance between protecting the integrity of nature and tradition against promoting change, towards positive human and economic development.
- We strive to be good stewards of all the resources entrusted to us, openly accountable for our work, systematic in evaluating our effectiveness, professional in managing our funds and responsible in our outlays and overheads.
- We seek to draw upon and reinforce the hope so often present in the lives of the poor that, in spite of all setbacks, a change for the better is possible. It is hope and determination that provide the dynamics for realizing our vision.
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Poverty is not God-determined.
It is man-made. It is not a fortuitous,
self-inflicted condition, but rather
a result of processes at work within the society.
If we so desire, we can eradicate poverty.
Rev. (Prof.) Obiora Ike (Chairman, GBF)
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