Rural Banks Staff To Be Retrained

DIRECTORS, MANAGEMENT and staff of rural banks in the country would be given sufficient orientation in the early part of next year on regulations and bye-laws governing rural banking.
The training is to make them abreast of the laws governing their operations so as not to flout them.

Samuel Patrick Awatey of the banking operations department of ARB Apex Bank stated this on behalf of the Managing Director of Apex Bank at the 20th annual general meeting of the Gomoa Ajumako Rural Bank at Gomoa Afransi.

Mr. Awatey said Parliament last year passed the ARB Apex Bank Limited Regulations to assist rural and community banks to solidify their operations and make them more effective, hence the planned orientation.

He emphasized the need for bank officials to attach professionalism, commitment and innovations to their work since the industry is now very sophisticated and the slightest disturbance to the equilibrium could ward off customers.

Mr Awatey said the computerization project in rural banks has received a major boost, adding that within three years under the Millennium Challenge Account (MCA), funds have been provided to install a Wide Area Network (WAN) to connect all rural banks to both the Apex Bank and Bank of Ghana.

The Board Chairman of the bank, Mrs. Rose E. Newman was worried that farmers and fishermen have refused to pay back micro-finance loans given to them.

She pointed out that plans were underway to take legal action against defaulters so that the bank could recover the loans since the situation was undermining the activities of the bank.

She stated that the bank has increased it deposit by 34 per cent from ¢2,560 million in 2005 to ¢3,421million in 2006.

From Sarah Afful, Gomoa Afransi