Bank granted 100 million cedis loans to women groups

Akyem-Wenchi (B/A), Sept. 16, GNA - The Akyem-Mansa Rural Bank at Akim-Ayirebi last year, granted over 100 million cedis to various women groups engaged in small scale soap manufacturing and palm oil extraction.

The Chairman of the Board of Directors of the bank, Mr Isaac Asare, who announced this at the opening ceremony of the Akim-Wenchi branch of the bank on Thursday, urged the people to form groups to be able to get similar loan facilities from the bank. He expressed the hope that they would take the bank as their own and support it to enable them get the benefit that goes with the establishment of the bank in the area.

Mr Asare, who is also the Financial Controller of the Ministry of Food and Agriculture (MOFA), said the bank had since 1999, been making profit, he added, that last year, the bank made a net profit of 180 million cedis.

The manager of the bank, Mrs Victoria Boadi appealed to the people to cultivate savings habit so that in times of financial difficulties, they could fall on the savings. She said the bank was classified as a "satisfactory bank" having a net asset of 2.6 billion cedis and a total shareholder's fund of over 400 hundred million cedis as at last year.

The Assembly member for Akim-Wenchi, Mr Yaw Darkwah appealed to the board of directors to involve strategies and human centered practices, which would not only help the people but would improve their standard of living. He urged the public relations section of the bank to explain its products to the populace at regular intervals in order to attract more customers.