23 Jun 2017
Agribank is focussed on catalysing the transformation
of agriculture in Namibia. The Bank plans to do this through inclusive lending
where renewed emphasis is placed on emerging and communal farmers as well as
improving service delivery efficiencies with specific focus on loan process
timelines. This was revealed by Sakaria Nghikembua, the Chief Executive Officer
of the bank, at its first ever stakeholder engagement dinner held in Rundu on Thursday,
22 June 2017.
Nghikembua further listed value addition
financing that will support economic growth and employment creation as key
milestones towards transforming the agricultural sector. Agribank furtherplans to enhance agricultural output through
training and mentorship programmes and has therefore established its own
specialised Agri-Advisory Services Division within the bank from 1 April this
this year. Nghikembua made the remarks during the dinner where the bank shared
its strategy and focus areas with key stakeholders while receiving feedback
through mutual interactions.
At the event, Agribank’s Board Chairperson,
Terttu Uyuni, stated that at the heart of Agribank’s strategy are the key
pillars of customer focus, financial sustainability and socio-economic
transformation, amongst others. The Agribank Chairperson explained that the
bank is focusing on customers because “we need to understand their needs, the
challenges they face as well as the opportunities available to them. Financial
sustainability requires us to grow our loan book, manage our expenses prudently
and ensure timely loan repayments to the bank.” She reiterated that the Board
and Management have a duty “to manage the bank in a sustainable and inclusive
manner so that we can make a wider developmental impact in our country.”
According to her, the socio-economic
development pillar of the bank’s strategy asserts the principle that, as a
national development financing institution, Agribank needs to be inclusive,
adding “It is critical that we devise appropriate strategies to reach out to
communal farmers, who have previously benefited only in a limited way from our
loan products and support services. The recent launch of the no-collateral loan
product for salaried employees supports this strategic aspiration.”
Uuyuni also
amplified the statement by Nghikembua on the bank’s catalytic role in the
transformation of agriculture by providing innovative and affordable financing
solutions to Namibians so that they can produce for more for themselves and the
country; as well as earn foreign currency for the country through exports. “By
taking advantage of our agro-processing financing, our citizens will not only
be able to add value and grow the economy, but they will also provide jobs,
secure livelihoods, eliminate poverty, restore people’s dignity and create
prosperity for all Namibians”, she stated.
The Agribank
chairperson further noted that for long, Agribank focused on funding primary
production activities. With Government’s emphasis now on value addition and
growth-at-home, the bank has realigned its strategy to ensure that it also
plays its part in the financing of value addition activities in the
agricultural space.
“It is against this background that the Board
approved the agro processing loan product which will add value to basic
agricultural produce, create employment and help expand production in support
of economic growth. The bank therefore invites clients with bankable ideas to
talk to us, so that we can guide them through the necessary processes to
realise their dreams of agricultural value-addition.”
At the occasion, the Governor of Kavango East
Region, Honourable Dr Samuel Mbambo, who was the guest of honour, pledged his
support towards the full implementation of Agribank’s strategic plan so that it
can deliver on its mandate to ensure that there is a bigger developmental
impact in the country.
Dr Mbambo challenged small scale, as well as
commercial, producers in his region and beyond, to step up their game and set
up factories to manufacture Namibia’s own tomato sauce and process other
produce into value-added products.
“As a country, we are currently importing
these most basic products, but if we organise ourselves and take advantage of
this facility by Agribank, we should be able to penetrate this market and make
a dent in our quest for food security and economic diversification,” the
Governor concluded.
The Agribank stakeholders’ dinner was
attended by both Governors of the Kavango East and Kavango West Regions, the
Mayors of Rundu and Nkurenkuru as well as senior government officials and key
clients of Agribank in the two regions.
END
Issued by:
Sakaria Nghikembua
Chief
Executive Officer
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and Communication Division at:
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Fax: 061 2074206
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