The newly appointed Board Chairperson of the Agricultural Bank of Namibia, Mr. Josephat Mwatotele, has announced that financial sustainability, service delivery and socio-economic transformation will be the key focus areas during their tenure as Board of Directors of the Bank. Mr. Mwatotele made the announcement during the inauguration of the revamped Agribank Rundu offices, on Wednesday, 15 February 2023.

During the occasion, the Board Chairperson stated that “for Agribank to continue to deliver on its agriculture development mandate and benefit as many Namibians as possible, now and for years to come,it calls for financial sustainability.” Furthermore, Mr. Mwatotele empasised that financial sustainability requires Agribank to stretch its limited resources in new and innovative ways (outside the traditional areas of business); being prudent in the use of available resources in a responsible and transparent manner including cost management; and growing its loan book and finding new ways to grow its capital base. In addition, the chairperson also stated that financial sustainability also means that “clients need to honour their obligations and ensure timely loan repayments to the bank, as this is the only way we can make a wider and inclusive impact on agriculture and contribute to the development of our country.”

From a customer service perspective will focus will be on service delivery. To this end, the Bank is in the process of reviewing existing policies and streamlining internal processes that will make it much more agile and responsive to customer needs. Thus, creating a functional service centre, such as the revamped Rundu office, is a good first step as provides point of presence for facilitating such customer engagements, stated Mr. Mwatotele.

Agribank is a national development finance institution expected to play a catalyst in addressing key national development issues such as food security, poverty reduction and employment creation within the agricultural space.Thus, the focus on socio-economic transformation is on creating targeted interventions to ensure that the Bank achieve inclusive developmental outcomes.

At the same occasion, Agribank’s Chief Executive Officer, Dr Raphael Karuaihe, reiterated the Bank’s role in the two Kavango regions, stating that “the two Kavango regions are strategic growth centres for Agribank, and we are confident that the visibly elevated office here will improve our service delivery in the regions whilst creating opportunities for growth.” The Chief Executive Officer then continued to provide an update on loan disbursements in the two regions, indicating that the Agribank Rundu office currently serves 316 active clients with 494 loan facilities worth over N$154.7 million, whereby Kavango East region has the biggest number of clients standing at 305, worth over N$151 million, while Kavango West has 11 clients with a loan book value of N$2.9 million.

The keynote speaker at the inauguration of the revamped office, Hon.Bonifatius Wakudumo, Governor of the Otjozondjupa region, congratulated Agribank for being the catalyst for transformation in the agricultural sector, as embraced in its mandate. “Over the past few months, we have noticed through various public fora that the Bank is gradually moving towards financial inclusion, and I want to take this opportunity to applaud you for innovating products that will address the needs of our citizens in the outer-lying regions in particular, and of all Namibians in general,” stated Hon. Wakudumo.

With Government’s emphasis now on value addition and growth-at-home, the Bank has accordingly realigned its strategy to ensure that it also plays a meaningful role in this strategic objective, by offering financing of value addition activities in the agricultural space.

Agribank’s loans can be utilized for purchasing farmland, production inputs, livestock, farming infrastructure, vehicles and equipment, biomass management, aquaculture, poultry, piggery, post-settlement support, as well as value addition through agro processing. The Bank also provides training and mentorship services to farmers through the Agri-Advisory Services Division.

Issued by:
Fillemon Nangonya
Public Relations Officer
For inquiries, kindly contact the Marketing and Communications Division
Tel.: 061 2074111 Email: info@agribank.com.na

The Agricultural Bank of Namibia hereby informs its clients, prospective clients, and all stakeholders that, as from the 1^st of December 2022, Agribank will no longer accept cash payments. The Bank will only accept payment through electronic transfer, deposits at commercial banks and point of sale (POS) at the branches. This decision to discontinue cash payments at Agribank branches is in line with the Bank’s strategy to effectively manage the security risk facing the Bank’s employees that are responsible for receiving and handling cash payments across all eight branches of the Bank.

Additionally, this changeis an effort by Agribank to further contribute to the combating of money laundering in the country. Money laundering is regulated in terms of the Financial Intelligence Act, with specific reference to Know Your Customer (KYC) requirements. This requires stringent verification of the source of cash funds and reporting thereon.

Agribank is a non-deposit taking financial institution which does not provide banking services like commercial banks. Agribank’s business is solely based on advancing loans to individuals, business entities, or financial intermediaries for the promotion and development of agriculture and related activities in the country. This implies that the Bank has limited cash handling facilities and does not charge clients for cash deposits. At the same time, the Bank continues to bear the costs when depositing cash in its own bank accounts at commercial banks.

With reference to Agribank services, one of the requirements when accessing Agribank loan products, is that an applicant is required to have a bank account with any commercial bank. Prospective clients who do not have bank accounts are required to open a bank account as a condition to access Agribank loan facilities. As such, the decision to not accept cash payments will not affect the ability of clients to make payments through electronic bank transfer and deposits through commercial banks.

Clients are therefore advised to obtain Agribank bank account details from their monthly account statements at Agribank offices and make payments through commercial banks. Clients are advised to indicate their loan account numbers as a reference, when making loan payments, to ensure timeous allocation to their accounts. Alternatively, clients are also encouraged to sign up for debit order deduction services with the Agribank for once-off payments or re-current monthly payments.

Lastly, Agribank would like to encourage clients to continue honouring their loan obligations, by ensuring timely payment of their loan instalments. This will enable the Bank to continue delivering on its mandate of promoting and developing the agriculture sector, to ensure national food security, promote sustainable employment, and improve overall economic growth.

Issued by:
Fillemon Nangonya
Public Relations Officer
For inquiries, kindly contact the Marketing and Communications Division
Tel.: 061 2074111 Email: info@agribank.com.na