Of the Pink Account and empowering women

I AM a woman. I love the colour pink for its soft vibrancy and romantic allure. I find its association with things feminine very apt. Which is why I find the concept of the Pink Ribbon appropriate as an international symbol for breast cancer awareness. Why therefore am I disturbed by the concept of Bank PHB's Pink Account? I must say I was a little alarmed when I read about it. I usually applaud Bank PHB for innovation and creativity. I truly admire the bank's freshness. I also think the bank is doing a good job with its corporate social investment programmes.

But as a woman, do I aspire to be a Pink Account card holder with the possibility of future access to powder rooms to touch up my make-up while in the premises of the bank? Should women now be swooning in ecstasy that they finally have the option to open an account and obtain financing to acquire baby care products, jewellery, and kitchen appliances without making any initial payment? I hope the whole idea is not as frivolous as it was made out to be in Michael Orie's write-up in the brands column of The Guardian on Monday, November 10, 2008. By the time I was done reading the piece, I certainly neither was impressed nor amused; and I'll tell you why.

I do not think I was the only woman who dashed to my neighbourhood Bank PHB branch earlier this year, to make enquiries regarding the Bank PHB UK Education Loan Scheme. Alas, I came away disappointed when I discovered I was required to produce collateral in order to obtain the loan to finance my son's Master's degree in the UK. I thought that was strange, because I suspect that in the UK and other countries where such facilities are available, you do not require collateral for an education loan. Well, not having property or shares or whatever else to the tune of the collateral required to match the cost of my son's education needs, I retreated without bothering to collect the appropriate forms for opening the education account. I had to find another way. And I did.

Maybe I am an aggrieved woman, or more correctly, a disappointed woman. But I am now wondering why I would require collateral to pay my son's school fees, but I can obtain a loan to buy jewellery and kitchen appliances seemingly without a problem. Or maybe I need to produce collateral for this too? Somehow, I do not see myself rushing to Bank PHB this time for credit to finance lifestyle acquisitions when as a woman, I have more fundamental challenges staring me in the face.

I may be speaking from the heart as a woman without any claim to understanding the fine points and intricacies of banking and finance and products that make money. But indeed, I am a Nigerian woman like the many others referred to by Bank PHB as "the foundations of our communities." And as Bank PHB's Olu Akanmu is so rightly quoted to have said at the launch of the Pink Account, "a woman's financial state not only improves her quality of life but that of her family and the society at large. Banking services need to be more women-friendly to encourage patronage among women and cultivate savings habits while providing better access to credit for women."

Would this be through access to credit to purchase jewellery, kitchen appliances and baby products? I should hope not! Even if this is only an initial platform. So I decided to do a little searching on the company's website to see if there is more. And I discovered that "the Bank PHB Pink Account is specifically designed for you as a woman to enable you enjoy more from life. Your Pink Account gives you the unique opportunity to take charge - not only at home, but in certain areas of your life, particularly important ones like family, fashion, and financial independence."

Is Bank PHB positioning financial independence for the young elite woman with few cares beyond the niceties of life and with reasonable income and the ability to acquire now and pay later? Or can the bank make space in its scheme for the woman with the ability to buy now and pay later, but who has pressing concerns regarding keeping her trade going and her children in school. Could it perhaps be the woman whose interest is to finance a business idea with the potential to create jobs for a few other people? It may even be a widow or single mother whose wage income can accommodate reasonable mortgage repayments to enable her and her family acquire a home of their own.

I do not acknowledge the challenges of credit recovery in a country such as ours where some (including women), are wont to take a bank's money with no intention of repaying. I dare say a few other countries also have those challenges but have found ways round it and still lend. It may take some ingenuity but it can be, and is being done. But maybe I am being unfair to Bank PHB. They do have a noble intention with the Pink Account, for a particular target, that is.

I should perhaps be raising these questions and addressing them to quite a number of our banks, all of which have the capacity and need to do more about positively impacting the lives and livelihoods of women as foundations of family and community. The much touted concept of women-friendly initiatives pass by with very little to be seen by way of real efforts targeted at the long term upliftment of women. Not even on the platform of corporate social investment do we see tangible results of so-called women empowerment beyond token gestures and mini projects with low potential for sustainable development of women.

Could I claim to be speaking for all women, seeing as I am not the typical target for the Pink Account? I suppose not. I am middle aged and I earn income sufficient to purchase jewellery, kitchen appliances, and I dare say baby products for my grandchildren when they do come along. But right now, as the sole provider for a household with several young adults on the threshold of concluding education and building futures, I experience periods of genuine financial struggle. Which is why I can reflect on the plight of women, younger and older, with lower incomes and more challenges; women whose needs go beyond the wants of jewellery, kitchen appliances, and top quality baby care products.

Then I ask, Bank PHB - what can you do for such women? You can do much more with the Pink Account. Or at least with the concept of a women-friendly account. I know you can. Please do not let it stop at supporting easy lifestyle through arranging credit in a fun banking atmosphere, with the opportunity to touch up in the powder room. Not when there are so many women out there in genuine and pressing need of banking support! Please.