By Chinwendu Obienyi
The Association of Chief Audit Executives of Banks in Nigeria (ACAEBIN) has assured that it will continue to strengthen its collaboration with stakeholders and regulatory agencies to enhance the banking system’s integrity, cyber-security and contribute to the nation’s economic improvement.
Its re-elected Chairman, Prince Akamadu, gave this assurance during its recently held Annual General Meeting in Abuja.
The week-long event with the theme “The Role of the Internal Auditor in Promoting Stability in the Financial Services Sector and National Economic Growth”, witnessed a convergence of members and other banking industry stakeholders sharing ideas and knowledge on the challenges and opportunities of the banking industry, by extension the economy, and the efforts of the Central Bank of Nigeria to stimulate the economy and reposition it in line with the mandate of the President, His Excellency, Bola Ahmed Tinubu.
Speaking to newsmen during the meeting, Akamadu highlighted the challenges faced by the Nigerian economy in the past year, which have impacted the banking industry and the general populace.
He emphasized the proactive role that internal auditors, as the third line of defense, must play in supporting efforts to address these challenges.
Akamadu said, “For us to continue to play our part as valued stakeholders, it is pertinent that we take a critical look into the future and equip ourselves with those critical skills and resources that would enable us to perform our functions well, not just as gatekeepers but also as valued advisors to our organisations and the industry at large”.
He further stated that the role of the banking sector was crucial in the Nigerian economy, adding that the retreat was part of the measures by the Association at contributing to the discussion on ways of addressing the foreign exchange challenges in the country.
He added that banks are not resting on their oars to curb fraudulent activities and that improving the Know Your Customer (KYC) mechanism was one of the means of reducing incidences of fraud to the barest minimum.
Akamadu and other Executive Committee members were re-elected for another two-year term to pilot the affairs of the Association.
In his acceptance speech, he thanked his colleagues for the confidence reposed on him and other members of the Executive. He pledged to continue to strengthen collaboration with other stakeholders and the regulatory agencies in the collective effort at sanitizing the banking system and improving the economy of the nation at large.