GBA Newsletter: October 2008

3 Minutes Read

GBA Newsletter

Dear GBA Members,

Greetings!I trust all of you are well, and getting ready for the Summit in London. As the event is near, please don’t hesitate to contact the Secretariat with any questions you may have. We look forward to seeing all of you in a couple of weeks.

GBA HAPPENINGS

Welcome to New GBA Members:

NBS Bank, Malawi

NBS Bank (formerly the New Building Society) was incorporated as a limited liability company on March 14th, 2003, and registered under the Banking Act on March 1st 2004. It started its banking operations on July 1st 2004 when the New Building Society was dissolved. NBS Bank operates through a network of 13 branches and 12 agencies throughout Malawi.

Opportunity International UK

Opportunity International’s (UK) mission is to provide opportunities for poor people to transform their lives by creating jobs, reducing vulnerability, stimulating small businesses and strengthening communities.
It achieves this by establishing sustainable microfinance organisations that provide financial services (loans, savings and insurance) and training to those too poor to qualify for traditional banking services or business training.

2 1/2 Weeks to the GBA Summit !!!

We hope you have made your flight bookings to London! For those of you who have submitted your participation form to the Secretariat, you will be receiving a message  from Ms. Julie Harris-Burland from HBOS providing you with your hotel confirmation number. Please note that going forward you are responsible for all cancellations and penalty fees.

Important dates to remember:

Friday, October 3– We trust you are almost done with your one pager for the GBA “Most Innovative Bank of the Year Award” and ready to submit it by Friday October 3rd to the Secretariat. Remember, the one pagers will be included in the Summit Program booklet. Members not participating will have to submit their annual program updates for 2008.

Wednesday October 8–As there are a number of new members this year, we would like to add some brief information on each of you in the Summit program booklet. So, please send a brief bio and your picture to the Secretariat by October 8th.

Wednesday October 15–As we would like to avoid any technical glitches during the sessions, those of you presenting should send your power point presentations to the Secretariat no later than October 15. Your moderators will be contacting you soon to coordinate with you on the sessions. Also, you can access the latest version of the agenda in the members only section of the website.

IN THE NEWSWoman to Woman, Online
By Claire Cain Miller – New York Times
August 13, 2008
(…)Advertisers are following the crowd, serving up 4.4 billion display ads on women’s Web sites in May, comScore said. That is more than for sites aimed at children, teenagers or families. “Moms are the decision makers of the household as far as purchases are concerned,” said Chris Actis, vice president and digital director at the ad agency MediaVest.
The rapid growth in advertising and traffic to women’s sites has attracted the attention of major media companies and venture capitalists.(…)
For more, please visit
http://www.nytimes.com/2008/08/14/technology/14women.html?_r=2&adxnnl=1&oref=slogin&adxnnlx=1222891771-ZcwUJ9v2pYx+LWsNw6RligEconomic crisis hurts women the most
By SARA K. GOULD, CEO of Ms. Foundation for Women
Miami Herald – September 20, 2008
(…)The current instability roiling Wall Street’s markets will lead to an increasingly dire economic situation for women. This is especially true for low-income women, women of color, single mothers and others who have long experienced the disproportionate impact of flawed economic policies.(…)
For more, please visit
http://www.miamiherald.com/opinion/other-views/story/694115.html
THE CHALLENGE OF HIRING & RETAINING WOMEN