Issue link: https://maltatoday.uberflip.com/i/1322776
maltatoday | SUNDAY • 27 DECEMBER 2020 12 COMMERCIAL BOV staff donate 300 boxes of food and € 5,000 to Foodbank Lifeline Foundation and St Jeanne Antide Foundation THIS year BOV staff could not get together to celebrate Christ- mas, friendships and teams. In- stead they got together to bring some cheer to people in need. Fully aware that this COVID Christmas was going to be an even tougher one for families and individuals struggling with poverty, BOV staff embarked on a mission to collect as many non-perishable food items and other basic products as pos- sible. BOV Branches directed their efforts towards helping St Jeanne Antide Foundation, do- nating toys, food items, person- al hygiene and cleaning prod- ucts. Other BOV Departments collected non-perishable food items for the Foodbank Life- line Foundation. Employees working from home donated money towards these causes, with the Bank subsequently topping up the fund. In total € 5,000 together with 300 boxes brimming with necessary items were collected and donated. "As soon as the appeal to staff was issued, the BOV spir- it simply shone through! We are ecstatic that we managed to collect so much. It was a true team effort, with a lot of planning and logistical co-or- dination going on behind the scene. Our vans went all around the Malta and Gozo, collecting the numerous boxes from our branches and depart- ments to ensure that the items are delivered well in time for Christmas!" stated Mary Rose Deguara, a member of the BOV team who worked relentlessly to make this initiative a suc- cess. "When we work together, amazing things happen. All of us at Bank of Valletta feel hum- bled to share our blessings with struggling individuals and fam- ilies. They definitely deserve a break! We hope that more and more groups will act up- on these Foundations' appeals to help make 2021 that little bit brighter for all those whom every day is a battle," declared Jes Sciberras one of the coordi- nators of this campaign. The Foodbank Lifeline Foun- dation provides individuals and families who find themselves in crisis, due to benefit delays, low income, homelessness, sickness or housing issues, with enough food to cover them in the short-term until a more long-term solution is found. St Jeanne Antide Foundation helps very vulnerable individ- uals and families facing com- plex life challenges, many of whom are doing their utmost to return to work, dealing with domestic violence, have severe illness in their family or are struggling with financial diffi- culties. More information on how you can support the FoodBank Lifeline and St Jeanne Antide Foundations can be found on https://www.foodbanklifeline. com and https://www.antide- malta.org/. EY Malta's Above Board – a webinar series designed for board members MANY organisations are look- ing into the lessons we can learn from the current crisis and as- sessing ways as to how business- es can be made more resilient. Some are executing deep stra- tegic and technological shifts, while at the same time navi- gating through fundamental changes in their operational and regulatory landscape. Will we look back and be confident that we took the adequate decisions to safeguard our employees, customers and future business? How can we emerge from this crisis stronger than before? These are some of the questions that undoubtedly are occupying board members' minds right now. While management con- tend with resiliency throughout this critical time, boards need to adopt a "futurist" mindset in or- der to ensure organisational sus- tainability in the long-term. EY Malta has recently launched Above Board, a 6-session webi- nar series, where EY's local ser- vice line and sector leaders will take you through the roles and responsibilities of directors in a world of constant and unpre- dictable changes. As the roles and responsibilities of directors become increasingly important in maintaining a sound business, directors have a duty towards their shareholders to ensure strategic direction and steward- ship towards the smooth func- tioning of the business. The webinars take place monthly, commencing on 18 February with the first session exploring the legal duties and re- sponsibilities of directors. It will go into the directors' role at law by distinguishing executive from non-executive directors as well as their general duties under the Companies Act. The following 5 sessions, each of 1.5 hours, will cover: statuto- ry reporting; CIT, AT and ex- change of information compli- ance; payroll and immigration compliance; managing financial crime risks; and concluding with the principles of good corporate governance, in July. The ses- sions will be conducted by 16 EY Malta field experts and are part of EY's CPE Circuit, a one-stop CPE shop, designed to keep at- tendants one-step ahead. This series is suitable for busi- ness entrepreneurs, board mem- bers, executive and non-exec- utive directors, directors on audit committees of boards and finance directors. CEOs, CFOs and executives working closely with boards are also encouraged to attend. EY Connect Learning Lead, Ediana Guillaumier said: "Our people are in constant con- tact with boards and directors therefore we decided to launch a webinar series that embodies the crucial task at hand, in an ever-changing global landscape. Expect it to be highly focused, providing insights and guid- ance especially since in times of heightened uncertainty, it is vi- tal boards react with impact and build renewed resilience, whilst doing so with the utmost integ- rity." The event will be CPE Accred- ited by the MIA and partici- pation is at a fee of €250 (incl. VAT). For more information visit https://www.ey.com/en_mt/ events/above-board--the-roles- and-responsibilities-of-direc- tors-explain and to register for all sessions contact events@ mt.ey.com.