Develop innovative products to woo more customers – Banks urged
Rural and Community Banks have been called upon to adopt innovative and strategic measures as well as use technology to develop products and services that would entice rural people to patronize their services.
Mr Eric Osei-Bonsu, Managing Director of ARB APEX Bank made the call in a speech read on his behalf at the 10th National Managers’ Conference of the Bank in Tamale at the weekend.
The conference was on the theme: “The role of rural and community banks and the ARB APEX bank in promoting financial services for the unbanked and under-banked”.
Mr Osei-Bonsu noted that the lack of appropriate access and products for the unbanked and under-banked had forced them to relay on savings in the form of gold, animals, raw materials and other informal financial intermediaries which did not provide adequate security for their savings.
He, therefore, urged the banks to consider the introduction of services such as credit and debit cards, electronic transfers and mobile savings, treasury bills and more importantly the introduction of an agricultural insurance policy for the rural folk who are mostly farmers and depend largely on rain feed agriculture.
The Manager also appealed to the banks to introduce financial advisory services to the people to explain their operations as well as the services and products they can offer them.
On staff recruitment, Mr Osei-Bonsu noted that banking experience and skills alone should not be the primary criteria for recruitment, saying that it was necessary for staff to establish close and trusting relationship with clients which, he added, was easier to do when the staff was familiar with the local language, customs and norms of the people.
He noted that this was an area of strength for the rural banks to leverage upon to develop products for the un-banked and under banked.
Mr Moses Bukari Mabengba, Northern Regional Minister in an address read for him observed that a lot of people outside the banking system had limited literacy, especially financial literacy and therefore suggested that in order to rope them into the banking system such people could be handled by using a system similar to the Akufo cheques system, where pictures and thumb prints were used.
He also urged the banks to regularly educate low income earners to appreciate that banking services were not for the rich alone, but for everyone irrespective of the size their incomes and that one must find a way of saving some of their income.
Mr Sulley Agholisi, President of the North Eastern Chapter of the ARB APEX Bank said the institution had established 133 rural and community banks and over 439 branches in the country providing banking services to communities previously unbanked.
He said through the operations of these banks, the banking culture had grown by leaps and bounds in the country.
He said the fact that rural and community banks and the ARB APEX Bank defied all odds and had successfully extended banking services to remote communities, some with difficult terrain, should qualify them as, “pro-disadvantaged agents of change and genuine partners in development”.
Source: GNA