Place emphasis on micro-financing activities

The President of the North-Eastern and Western Chapters of the Association of Rural Banks (ARB), John Asabigi, has called on rural banks to support micro-financing activities as a means of alleviating poverty in the rural areas.

He said there was the need for rural banks to serve as focal points for micro-financing, since that would enable them to meet their target objectives.

The ARB President made the call at a five-day trainers' training workshop in micro-credit schemes in Bolgatanga.

The workshop, which was sponsored by Northern Finance (NORTHFIN), a non-governmental organisation (NGO), was aimed at equipping participants with the requisite skills and knowledge on the relevant areas relating to micro credit.

The participants were3 drawn form the West and East Mamprusi Community banks, the Sonzela Rural Bank, all in the Northern Region, and the Naara Rural Bank in the Upper East Region.

The ARB President appealed to rural banks to educate their customers on the re-denomination exercise.

“The public always rely on banks for information on the exercise. You must be abreast of the whole exercise so that you will not disappoint them,” he stressed.

He stated that there was the need for rural banks not only to work with great precision and discipline but also do more to help build the capacity of their clients in order to keep their micro-finance programme on track.

The Bolgatanga Branch Manger of the ARB-Apex Bank, Mr. George Annor, advised participants to disseminate the skills and knowledge that they had leant to their co-workers.