United Bank for Africa (UBA) Plc has graduated 374 young professionals from its Graduate Management Accelerator Programme (GMAP), strengthening its talent pipeline across Africa.
The graduates, comprising 223 women and 151 men, completed Cohort 21 of the bank’s flagship talent development programme at a ceremony held at the Landmark Events Centre in Lagos.
Of the 374 graduates, 345 were drawn from UBA Nigeria, while the remaining 29 came from the bank’s subsidiaries in Guinea, Tanzania, Kenya, Mozambique, Uganda, Zambia and Côte d’Ivoire.
The latest cohort brings the number of young professionals trained through the GMAP to more than 5,000, reinforcing the bank’s investment in developing skilled professionals for the financial services industry.
The programme combines structured classroom learning with practical banking experience, covering areas including product development, trade finance, customer experience and other core banking functions.
Speaking at the graduation, UBA Group Chairman, Tony Elumelu, identified customer service as a critical factor that would continue to distinguish the bank as technology increasingly makes financial products more similar across institutions.
“Products can be commoditised, but service never can, because there is always a differentiator in how you serve and how you create,” Elumelu said.
He noted that as financial institutions increasingly adopt similar technologies, the way those technologies are deployed to improve customers’ experiences would become an important competitive advantage.
“As everyone leverages technology, the differentiator becomes how that technology is used to make our customers happy,” he added.
Elumelu also expressed confidence in the new graduates as potential future leaders of the institution, urging them to maintain passion, discipline, hard work and a commitment to excellence throughout their careers.
UBA Group Managing Director and Chief Executive Officer, Oliver Alawuba, described the graduates’ certificates as a commissioning into the next stage of their professional journeys rather than an end to their training.
He urged them to approach every assignment with commitment, regardless of where they were posted or the nature of their responsibilities.
“You came from different countries, with different experiences and disciplines, but today you have graduated as one UBA family, united by one ambition, to build Africa’s future,” Alawuba said.
He encouraged the graduates to view every posting as an opportunity to demonstrate their abilities and develop professionally.
“Your first posting may not be your preferred destination, but make it your platform and give it your best. No assignment is too small to reveal a great attitude, and no role is too modest for excellence,” he said.
Alawuba further challenged the young professionals to continue learning as the banking industry evolves, protect their integrity and translate their potential into measurable performance.
He linked these expectations to UBA’s core values of excellence, enterprise and execution.
The GMAP serves as UBA’s structured entry pathway for young graduates, providing participants with technical knowledge, mentorship and practical exposure designed to prepare them for careers in banking and leadership.
The programme forms part of the bank’s wider talent development strategy as it seeks to build a workforce capable of supporting its operations and contributing to economic growth across Africa.
UBA currently serves more than 45 million customers and operates across 20 African countries, alongside its presence in the United Kingdom, United States, France and the United Arab Emirates.
Through its retail, commercial and institutional banking operations, the group provides financial services while also promoting financial inclusion through technology-driven and customer-focused solutions.
