Once a year, Raiffeisen Bank publishes an invitation for sponsorships and donations and receives applications from many associations every year.  The invitation is published both on the bank’s web site and in the daily newspapers.

The invitation has proved to be very successful. Following our social responsibility strategy, we have contributed to many projects focused on children and adults under care, in the fields of charity work,  culture, education and sports as well as ecological and environmental projects for the same target group.

According to the rules of the invitation, only citizens’ associations and institutions with projects supporting children and adults under care may apply.

This project has been realised since 2001. We have so far provided support to more than 1,000 various projects, thereof 60 projects were supported financially in 2017 alone.

As part of our sustainability strategy focused on support to children, through various initiatives we are providing a positive contribution to the community and the environment in which we operate. Following this commitment, we have equipped children playgrounds in cooperation with Western Union since 2008. In doing so, we also mark World Saving Day. In 2017 alone, we have inaugurated three playgrounds -  in Banovići, Cazin and Derventa. All in all, we have donated 27 playgrounds across Bosnia and Herzegovina so far. For 2018, we have donated playgrounds in Srebrenik, Vitez and Ilidža.

All playgrounds are equipped with high standard devices that are environmentally friendly and meet the highest technical and other standards. The devices also make children happy and help them develop their skills in a playful way. 

Raffe the Giraffe, our children saving mascot, is an essential part of each playground. Through various activities, we work to promote our permanent values and raise awareness in children about the importance of saving and its benefits for economy and society.

Additionally, we traditionally celebrate World Saving Day on 31 October each year by hosting 300 to 400 children in our branches.  

In line with its sustainability strategy, Raiffeisen Bank traditionally combines the achievement of financial success with socially responsible business conduct. Accordingly, money designated for greeting cards and advertisements for religious holidays The following associations were supported through this initiative in 2017:

• “A Heart for Children with Cancer“
• “SOS Children's Villages” Sarajevo 
• SUMERO Association for Support to People with Intellectual Disabilities FB&H
• Kindergarten “Pčelica”, Orašje
• Association for Support to Perspons with Mental Disabilities Banjaluka
• Association of Parents of Children with Physical and Mental Disabilities “Neven”, Prnjavor
• Center for Visually Impaired Children and Young People, Sarajevo
• Association for Support to People with Special Needs “Betanija”, Vitez

and the New Year is redirected for charitable purposes and donations to associations focusing on children and adults with special needs.

We are delighted that our customers and business partners react very positively to this initiative.

• Care andd Education Centre for Children and Adolescents with Special Needs “Nova nada”, Tomislavgrad
• “Lepa Radić” Kindergarten Gradiška

In addition to regular donations for religious holidays and the festive season, we have a lasting and extended cooperation with some associations.

Our cooperation with the SUMERO Association for Support to People with Intellectual Disabilities  FB&H lasts since 2005.  As part of this cooperation, we have supported the construction of the Rehabilitation Centre for Persons with Disabilities in Vogošća, aimed at providing support to people with disabilities and their families, and working on their efficient inclusion in the social community. 

We have  been providing support to the Association “A Heart for Children with Cancer in FB&H“ since 2009. Since 2013 we have been donating waste paper to this association, which they pass on for recycling and generate income for their activities. We have supported the construction of the Parents’ House, which accommodates children with malignant diseases and their families.  In addition to financial support, the bank’s staff helps with donations and by volunteering to equip the Parents’ House.

Within our successful cooperation with SOS Children's Villages dating back to 2003, we have successfully implemented many joint activities and projects. SOS Children’s Villages are committed to building  families for children in need, who are orphans or whose families are not able to care for them, by giving them the change to create lasting ties in a SOS family.

These three organisations are also indirectly supported by our customers, as 10 pfennigs from each transaction made by a MasterCard Shopping are allocated to them.

We supported the Hastor Foundation in 2009 for the first time. The foundation is a relief, non-profit organisation which works to support and strengthen children and young people on their way to becoming self-confident members of their society.

The bank’s staff is also very pleased to host scholarship holders in its head office, where they have the change to learn more about the bank’s operations in a relaxed atmosphere.

The Hastor Foundations grants scholarships to talented children and young people, and also to  socially disadvantaged adolescents. Since its establishment, this foundation has been supporting and encouraging elementary and secondary school children as well as students from all parts of Bosnia and Herzegovina, who seek to improve their personal live and the community through their education, and who have a strong drive for success to improve their personal lives and the lives of others through education.

The H. Stepic CEE Foundation was established in  2006 by Mr. Herbert Stepic and is supported in its work by Raiffeisen Bank International, a member of which is Raiffeisen banka in B&H. 

This foundation aims to provide support to children, adolescents and young women in the countries of Central and Eastern Europe, providing children with a chance for a better future, with a special focus on education. This project is organised and managed on a volunteer basis, by colleagues from RBI Vienna and colleagues from Raiffeisen network banks in Central and Eastern Europe.

In 2009, the H. Stepic CEE Foundation financed the construction of six apartments in Ilijaš, which today accommodate six families of socially disadvantaged women, single mothers, in the Ilijaš Municipality. This foundation provided a donation in 2012 for the construction of the “Leptir” Day Care Centre for Children with Special Needs in Srebrenica. The H. Stepic CEE Foundation constantly implements a project of donating books and school equipment in schools in north-eastern Bosnia, in the towns Zvornik, Bratunac, Srebrenica, Vlasenica, Lopare, Ugljevik, Milići, Bijeljina and Janja.

Our employees are also glad to participate in the volunteer work of donating school equipment and books, share their time with children in village schools, thus contributing to the work of this foundation.

Team building is a regular annual gathering of our staff, where we aim to combine team building with something that will have a positive impact on the community we operate in. Last year, for example, we organised an action for doing up the yards of kindergartens, schools and institutions that work with people under care. The Management Board Members, all division heads and many employees joined this action.

Actions of this type were implemented in Sarajevo, Zenica, Mostar, Tuzla and Banjaluka, where the bank's staff dedicated one weekend to contribute pro-actively to this action. As we believe that achieving business success goes hand in hand with corporate responsibility, with such actions we strive to raise awareness for similar actions and act as an example for others to contribute to their communities.