RURAL BANK PLEDGES TO SERVE MORE RURAL PEOPLE (PAGE 35)

AFTER placing first for the third time in the rural banking category of the prestigious Ghana Club 100 rankings, the Atwima Kwanwoma Rural Bank at Pakyi Number Two in the Ashanti Region has declared its intention to reach out to more people in the rural areas who have been denied ready banking services for a long period.
The bank says it is developing quality products that would meet the reach of the rural population and thus help reduce poverty in those areas.
The Chief Executive Officer (CEO) of the bank, Mr Godfried Odame Asare, told the Daily Graphic in an interview at Pakyi Number Two that rural banks could not afford to deviate from their original focus of helping to alleviate poverty in the rural areas.
“We have done this for years and would continue to do that because the people in those areas also deserve better,” he said.
At an award ceremony that brought together the captains of Ghanaian business, the Atwima Kwanwoma Rural Bank topped all the rural banks in the country and placed a respectable 19th position in the overall Ghana Club 100 ranking.
The awards night, organised by the Ghana Investment Promotions Centre under the distinguished patronage of Mr John Dramani Mahama, the Vice-President, awarded organisations which had performed creditably well in the year 2008 based on three key indicators: size, profitability and growth.
The elated CEO, Odame Asare, who received the prestigious award on behalf of the bank, said he was grateful for the honour done the bank.
“I am extremely happy because this has been a very competitive competition and the third time we have done so well and emerge tops in rural banking in the country,” he stressed.
Mr Odame Asare said the success of the bank had not come on a silver platter, but hard work, dedication and commitment on the part of staff, management and the board had been the underlying factor.
He assured customers and potential customers of the bank that the bank would not rest on its laurels, but would continue to work harder, be innovative and come out with good products that would solve the financial burdens of all and sundry.
The Atwima Kwanwoma Rural Bank was established in 1983 with the prime aim of providing rural financial services and intermediation.
It was the 68th rural bank to be set up in the country and has managed to achieve the enviable distinction of being rated for several years now as the largest rural bank in the country.
The bank’s attention has been targeted at rural poverty reduction and its ability to promote and deliver a customer-friendly service.
Atwima Kwanwoma Rural Bank is now very dynamic in developing new financial products and repackaging existing ones to meet the needs of its numerous customers through the application of modern-banking technology.
The bank has expanded its outreach in the micro-finance sector by providing financial services, especially savings and loans to low-income persons in the form of “Susu” and “Group” lending.
The Atwima Kwanwoma Rural Bank maintains a large budget for community development.
The aim is to make a difference in the lives of the communities in which the bank operates, especially in areas of health, scholarships, orphanage support, education and community development.