Value to Our Stakeholder
I
Corporate Social Responsibility
Acting with a sense of social responsibility and the spirit of social sharing, Ziraat Bank is constantly expanding the support it provides to culture and the arts each year.
Ziraat Bank maintains its endeavors to bring improvement to individuals and society in various fields, especially in culture, the arts, education and sports. Carrying out projects that will contribute to the cultural heritage of society, the Bank takes its mission in terms of social responsibility one step further every year.
Ziraat Bank fulfils its responsibility to society through the various projects it supports, as well as the museums and art galleries it hosts.
Ziraat Bank “Inside Art for Art’s Sake”
Ziraat Bank, which has integrated the importance it has placed on art and artists under the banner of “In Art for Art’s sake” since its establishment, has one of the most extensive collections of sculpture and paintings in Türkiye with over 2,500 works. The Bank shares the works in its collection with society through its collection book and the comprehensive exhibitions which it organizes.
The Ziraat Bank Collection of Paintings continues to expand with works provided by artists whose paintings are exhibited in Ziraat Bank galleries.
With the aim of contributing to the cultural and artistic life of society, Ziraat Bank presents its collection and exhibitions, comprising major works by national and international artists, to art lovers at the Ziraat Bank İzmir Art Museum and the Ankara Kuğulu Art Gallery.
The “Ziraat Bank İzmir Art Museum,” opened in 2023 in the historical building of Ziraat Bank in İzmir Konak, continued to host art lovers in 2024. More than 100 works selected from the Bank’s art collection are exhibited in the Museum, which was prepared with the requirements of contemporary museology.
With its temporary exhibition hall, children’s education workshop and digital experience areas, the İzmir Art Museum was established with the aim of creating a new meeting point for art in İzmir and contributing to the cultural and artistic life of the city.
Ziraat Bank is proud to present the İzmir Art Museum, the first art gallery owned by a bank in İzmir, as a gift to the 100th anniversary of our Republic.
Ziraat Bank supported the 2024 Culture Road Festival events organized in different cities. These events took place in historical and cultural venues, allowing art enthusiasts to engage with numerous artists.
Additionally, in 2024, the Bank sponsored the 31st International Aspendos Opera and Ballet Festival, one of oldest cultural celebrations organized in Türkiye by the General Directorate of State Opera and Ballet.
Türkiye’s First Banking Museum
The Ziraat Bank Head Office Building, designed by the Italian Architect Giulio Mongeri and built in 1929, is located in the Ulus district of Ankara.
The Ziraat Bank Museum is located in the Hall of Honor on the ground floor of the building, which is among the buildings of the First National Architectural Period of the Republic of Türkiye. The Ziraat Bank Museum, which opened its doors in 1981 with the aim of transferring Ziraat Bank’s long-standing knowledge and experience to the future, was expanded with the inclusion of the basement level as well as the ground floor after the restoration works started in the historical building in 2017, and was reopened to visitors after its facelift in November 2019.
The Ziraat Bank Museum exhibits the commercial, economic, political, cultural, artistic and educational change which has taken place in the Turkish banking system since its beginnings to the present, and its development from past to present. The museum showcases many antique objects, including these features, used in the banking system in a historical atmosphere.
In addition to physical visits, Ziraat Bank Museum also offers a virtual tour, which is prepared by transferring all sections and details to digital media with three-dimensional imaging technology and accessed via the Bank’s website. It is possible to visit the museum and experience the museum step by step from computers and mobile phones.
The Bank’s exhibition hall in the Ziraat Towers of the Istanbul Finance Center continued to welcome visitors in 2024. The IFC Gallery was opened in 2023, and the “Banking from the Ottoman Empire to the Present” exhibition was organized at the Gallery, hosted by the Bank, in recognition of the meaning and importance for both our Republic and the Bank. The exhibition includes information and graphic arrangements regarding all banks established in Türkiye throughout the Republic period, as well as objects and ephemera documents.
Support for education within the scope of social responsibility
In 2024, Ziraat Bank continued to support school construction projects and endeavors to improve the physical conditions of schools in priority development regions within the scope of the “Children on Vacation, Schools in Renovation” social responsibility project.
Uninterrupted contribution and sponsorship for sports
In addition to its contributions to the finance sector over the past 161 years, Ziraat Bank continues to support Turkish sports and maintains the sponsorship agreement under which the TVF Başkent Volleyball Hall is named as the Ziraat Bankkart Volleyball Hall.
Ziraat Bankkart Sports Club of Ziraat Bank, which has been supporting sports and athletes for many years, achieved one of the most important successes in the history of the club and Turkish volleyball, reaching the semi-finals of the CEV Champions League.
Ziraat Bank’s Ziraat Turkish Cup naming rights sponsorship, aimed at contributing to Turkish football, was renewed for the 2024/2025 season. This season marks the 16th consecutive year of this sponsorship.
Support for technology and innovation events
Ziraat Bank supported the 6th Productivity and Technology Fair, held at the Ankara ATO Congresium between February 08-10, 2024, with the aim of exhibiting technological products which contribute to increasing productivity in our country and in the world, delivering the results of these activities to large masses, and raising awareness in the field of productivity.
The Türkiye Innovation Week sponsored by the Bank was held at the Haliç Congress Center between October 10-12, 2024, with the organization of the Turkish Exporters Assembly (TİM). The event, which focuses on value-added production, technology, enterprise and finance, was closely followed on national and international levels.
Other Activities
Ziraat Bank contributed to the completion of the Darülaceze (Almshouse) Social Service City Project, a unique project rebuilt after 128 years to increase social welfare, and supported the transfer of the deep-rooted experience of the Almshouse Presidency to future generations.
Ziraat Bank continues to support cultural activities under the sense of responsibility arising from its historical mission. As part of the Bank’s sponsorship agreement with the Presidential Symphony Orchestra Ada Ankara, it was decided that the Main Hall would be named “Ziraat Bank Main Hall” and the Blue Hall would be named “Bankkart Blue Hall” for five years.
The 3rd Farm Summit was organized on 05-06 December 2024 with the support of the All Milk, Meat and Breeding Cattle Breeders Association (TÜSEDAD) and the Ministry of Agriculture and Forestry.
The Turkish Entrepreneurs Meeting Summit, organized to support the development of entrepreneurship in Türkiye and to ensure communication and coordination among entrepreneurial business people, was held in İstanbul on 17-18 December 2024. The “Ziraat Bank 3rd Agricultural Ecosystem Meeting” was held on May 17, 2024 at the Haliç Congress Center in Istanbul with the high presence of President, Recep Tayyip Erdoğan, the Minister of Treasury and Finance, Mehmet Şimşek, the Minister of Agriculture and Forestry, İbrahim Yumaklı, the General Manager of Ziraat Bank, Alpaslan Çakar, members of the Bank’s Board of Directors, and stakeholders in the agricultural ecosystem.
At Ziraat Bank 3rd Agricultural Ecosystem Meeting, where the opening speech was delivered by the President, the General Manager of Ziraat Bank introduced the Ziraat Farmer Platform, where all natural persons and legal entities in the agricultural ecosystem chain will have the opportunity to meet in a single application, farmers will be able to follow all banking transactions, as well as sector and market developments, and have the opportunity to directly sell the agricultural products they produce with 9 modules within the platform.
The meeting ended with the 3rd panel on the “Future of Agriculture” and B2B meetings where stakeholders in the agricultural ecosystem had the opportunity to develop their cooperation.
The opening ceremony of the new semester of the Ziraat Bank Banking School, which has its roots in the Applied Banking School established in 1926, was held at Ziraat Bank’s Historical Head Office Building in Ulus, Ankara with the participation of the Rector of Ankara University, Prof. Dr. Necdet Ünüvar, the General Manager of the Bank, Alpaslan Çakar, Members of the Board of Directors, and other invited guests.
Ziraat Bank participated in 14 agricultural fairs in the fair list announced by TOBB in 2024 and promoted its products and services. In addition, the Bank participated in 14 career fairs organized under the theme “Talent is all around” under the coordination of the Presidential Human Resources Office and provided information about the Bank’s career opportunities.
President Recep Tayyip Erdoğan honored Ziraat Bank by stating at the Ziraat Bank 3rd Agricultural Ecosystem Meeting that Ziraat Bank has been standing by farmers and producers for more than 160 years; “Since 1863, Ziraat Bank has been the locomotive of Turkish agriculture. Our Bank stood by farmers, tradesmen, merchants, and entrepreneurs in times of poverty in our country, including times of war. It played a vital role in preventing our producers from falling into the clutches of loan sharks and interest lobbies that exploit the marrow of our people. Ziraat Bank maintains its stance prioritizing the country and the nation today as it did in the past. I sincerely congratulate our bank and its employees who provide strong support to Türkiye’s agricultural sector with the understanding that if there is Ziraat, there is agriculture all over the country.”
The integrated report addresses the economic, environmental, and social performance of Ziraat Bank for the period between 1 January 2024 and 31 December 2024 under a holistic approach. The report includes information regarding the Bank’s banking activities and its domestic and international subsidiaries.
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