By HELEN ZULU –
THE National Savings and Credit Bank (NATSAVE) has lent out funds worth K16 million to 300 farmers countrywide under the Bunjimi Asset Plus scheme.
The Bunjimi Asset Plus loan scheme is a partnership between NATSAVE and the Zambia National Farmers Union (ZNFU) aimed at promoting access to affordable finance and equipment to small scale farmers among other components.
NATSAVE managing director Cephas Chabu said most farmers were benefiting from this product as it had multiplier effects on the surrounding communities.
He said at the on-going 90th Zambia Agriculture and Commercial Show in Lusaka at the weekend that access to finances by farmers had remained a challenge hence the need to mitigate the problem.
He said the scheme boosted the economic levels of the farmers and eventually benefited the community in which they lived.
“The equipment does not only benefit the recipient farmers but also have a multiplier effect on the surrounding community.
“This programme started from Mkushi area and when the product started to mature, we started getting applications from different provinces,” Mr Chabu said.
He said the scheme had received overwhelming response from the farmers and that the loan scheme was steadily expanding its portfolio to equip farmers with assets of their choices through mechanisation.
He also said NATSAVE had 39 agents in remote areas and 38 branches in rural area aimed at reaching out to the unbanked population.
“I must mention that we are participating in the show for the first time and we are happy to identify ourselves with the theme as it speaks well with what is happening at the bank in terms of product development,” he said.
Mr Chabu further said the bank had developed linkages between its customers and the market to avoid having Non-Performing Loans (NPL).
“We are in linkage banking; we develop linkages between customers and market for customers to have cash flows for paying back the loans.
“This is the model helping us going forward, we may have had bad loans in the past but the current environment is that we are able to advice clients and move with them,” he said.