Ecobank Ghana’s legal team, led by Awuraa Abena Asafo-Boakye, consists of seven lawyers and four non-legal employees. The team has recently received acclaim for the introduction of a ground-breaking project management software and for developing a billing system to place monetary value on the services of in-house lawyers.

With an open eye for new innovation, Asafo-Boakye and her team have also been behind the implementation of a legal business partnership model. To this end, each lawyer in the department has been assigned as a legal business partner to specific departments and branches in the bank. As legal business partners, the lawyers are required to provide all legal services required by the departments and branches assigned to them and serve as a first point of contact for any legal assistance required.

Apart from significantly improving efficiency of work within the function, this innovation has contributed to bridging the gap between legal and the rest of the company. The legal department constantly provides professional advice to Ecobank Ghana’s board of management and influence the company’s strategic direction. ‘The vision of the department is to be a world-class legal unit, providing impeccable legal services and support to the entire bank’, Awuraa Abena Asafo-Boakye shares.

‘Our mission is to deliver impeccable legal services that are simple in presentation, speedy in delivery and superior in quality to support the bank in achieving its vision and mission. We are made up of very talented members who are consistently exposed to world class training and are thereby equipped to deliver top-notch legal services to the bank in line with the vision and mission of the department’.