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Momodou
Denmark
11826 Posts |
 Posted - 03 Apr 2008 : 20:28:16
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West African English Speaking Bankers Meet
By Amie Sanneh
The West African English speaking countries in the banking sector are attending a three day sub regional workshop in Banjul at the Paradise Suites Hotel in Kololi.
Participants are to discuss and share experiences about new initiatives for the development of sustainable microfinance operations in the sub region and beyond.
Participant are from Ghana, Nigeria, Liberia, Sierra Leone and the Gambia . The theme for the workshop is “Innovations in addressing rural finance challenges in west Africa”.
Speaking at the opening ceremony, the Governor of Central Bank of The Gambia, ,Momodou Bamba Saho, said microfinance is widely recognized as one of the tools in the fight against poverty, as it can empower poor people in improving their livelihood. He added that hunger and poverty remains the two scourges of humanity to date.
The Governor explained that in the Gambia, like most developing countries, the majority of the population is poor and predominantly engaged in primary production. The largest part of the productive sector he went on, does not have access to even basic payment services or savings accounts. He added that most of the small and informal enterprises also lack access to credit which hinder their growth and development. “Thus the microfinance has the potential to fill the gap by serving groups and communities that the formal financial sector has difficulty reaching” he said. The Central Bank Governor added that financial institutions need to win the confidence of clients and authorities to succeed. “For improved performance and sustainability, microfinance players need an appropriate legal policy framework for an orderly growth and development of the sub-sector. In the Gambia he went on, the Central Bank has recently reviewed the microfinance bill aimed at transforming the sector to not only serve their clients better but ensure that they are better governed and managed.
Governor Saho noted that due to the dynamism and multifaceted nature of poverty, microfinance institutions in the sub-region need to be more proactive and innovative in responding to the needs and aspiration of their customers.
Also speaking at the opening of the program, the Secretary General of African Rural and Agricultural Credit Association ( AFRACA), Mbrta Mary Nandazi, said this workshop is specifically for West African English speaking countries. She added that they have already held workshops for the West Africa French..
She said their mission is to improve the rural finance environment through the promotion of appropriate policy frameworks and to support member institutions to provide sustainable quality financial services to the rural population.
Source: Foroyaa Newspaper Burning Issues
Issue No.38/2008, 2 – 3 April 2008
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