But there is veritable hope on the horizon, thanks to the conviction and resolve of the management of Lower Pra Rural Bank, who say supporting agric-based businesses has not only expanded the frontiers of banking in the country, it has indeed proven a worthwhile venture.

The bank has slated its 29th Annual General Meeting (AGM) of shareholders for Saturday, June 10 at its headquarters at Shama in the Western Region, and the board chairman, directors and management are all hopeful shareholders would be impressed by the good performance of their bank.

Established in the early 1980s, the Lower Pra Rural Bank besides registering huge strides in supporting farmers and reaching out to the largely unbanked communities within its coverage with tailor-made products, is also encouraging savings and with that, supporting the national rural transformation agenda.

And in covering the unbanked population, the bank’s other objective is to provide real security for the life savings of customers and protect them from the activities of swindlers some of who operate unregistered and unlicensed microfinance companies yet promise non-existent packages.

History
To ensure that the rural dwellers were not left out due to their unique geographical location and socio-economic activities, rural banks were first established in the country in 1976 to provide banking services to rural populations, with a major focus to provide credit to small-scale farmers and businesses and to support development projects.

Following successes chalked up in providing the critical banking services, the idea gained nationwide spread, which process saw the establishment of Lower Pra Rural Bank with a vision to lead the sector in the country with community development in its catchment areas.
In 1983, the Esemaman Rural Bank Limited now known as the Lower Pra Rural Bank was formerly incorporated and licensed to operate the business of banking in the same year.

The bank caters for the banking needs of businesses and individuals in the Shama and the Mpohor Wassa East, Ahanta West districts and the Sekondi Takoradi Metropolis with over 10 branches and agencies across the Western Region.
Aside from the head office in Shama, there are branches in Aboadze, Daboase, Kojokrom, Essikado, Effiakuma, Kokompe, Kwesimintsim, Anaji, Mpohor, Axim, Nkroful, Tarkwa, and Takoradi Technical University, with other customers coming from the Wassa East District, Sekondi-Takoradi metropolis, Nzema East and Tarkwa Nsuaem municipalities.

The operations are mostly in areas populated by fisher folks, who are directly involved in fishing and processing, petty traders of fishing gears, artisans, livestock farmers, farmers, drivers and white-collar job employees.

Well-tailored products
Mindful of the target customers the bank has tailor-made products to meet the needs of the people within the catchment areas.

These products include Epo Nworaba, Kese Wo Kan, Gyedzi, Ebusua mfre yie, Enyidado school fees, Susu loans, Nhyira and Asomdwee. The products cater for health, education, trading and transportation needs of the customers.
Traditional banking products such as current and saving accounts, fixed deposits, harvest, provident savings and a couple other products are available.

The needs of the target groups
Overdraft and salary advance facilities are also available to salaried workers, while fishermen and fish processors, among other people are able to apply for loans to purchase outboard motors, process their fish and procure other inputs.
Those in rice farming, under the Valley Rice Project, can also make use of the Enyidado Rice Package to expand their farms.

As part of its commitment to the development of education in the area, the Lower Pra Rural Bank provides support with its Enyidado School Fees for farmers, fishermen and others engaged in other economic activities to pay the fees of their children.

Women In Development
To support women, the bank in partnership with Freedom From Hunger (FFH), a non-governmental organisation, established the Women In Development Project in 1992 to support women. The project established a credit programme in the catchment areas purposely designed to empower the rural woman to tackle the problem of poverty, hunger and malnutrition.

Women needing credit were encouraged to form credit with savings associations (CSA) and in turn invest in activities that they know already and are comfortable with.
According to the Chief Executive Officer, Mr Isaac K. Afful, the bank had since established 121 CSA with an average of 20 members in each association across 21 Communities.

Consumer Credit Scheme
As the world advances, the farmers, fishermen, processors and other workers would wish to enjoy a little luxury, therefore, the bank has set up a consumer credit unit, which provides customers with a wide range of consumer and household goods, such as refrigerators, televisions sets, video decks, sewing machines, textiles, clothing, cookers, fans, and asbestos roofing sheets.
The customers of the bank apply for such items and make payment in instalments to afford customers and their families who cannot pay cash at sales point some flexibility in acquiring some of life’s comfort.

The way forward
Mr Afful said Lower Pra Rural Bank would not depart from its core rural banking concept, and that. “going forward we want to cover areas that there are no banking services, no savings, nothing.”
“Such areas have been invaded by some microfinance companies for which monies have been collected but operators cannot be found. We have identified such areas, it’s an ongoing concept and we will send banking to their doorstep,” he said.

“Atobiase is one of the communities which have suffered from these unidentified microfinance companies which have bolted with customers savings. But as we speak, we have moved to the area, taken them through the process and gained their confidence and providing them banking services,” he said.
The bank has moved to Akyempem and also covered all areas that are prone to these rip-offs of these unidentified microfinance groups.

“Our dream is to bring each community to the main banking stream, and we will get there as a bank with the people in the communities working closely with us,” he said.
He said as part of its sustainability and community centred plans in the areas of education, sanitation and other communal support aimed at improving the lives of the people, “we encourage the community to save, provide access to funding to improve their businesses, design products that support their daily economic lives,” he said.

Human resource and team
Human resource, he said, was the key factor to development and that the bank had a total staff of 342 and recruited mostly from its catchment area as part of its contribution to job and wealth creation.
The management team consists of Mr. Isaac K Afful as the CEO with B.Sc Admin, Executive MBA, LLB; Mr Ishmael Obuae, Senior Manager, Operations with MBA, CA Ghana; the Deputy CEO, Mr Stephen Nana Bentum, holds B.com, MA; Ms. Francisca Adetsu, Senior Manager, Finance and Admin with B.Com, while Ms Grace Adjei-Misa, Senior Manager, Credit has B.Sc.
The Senior Manager, Audit, Mr Jonathan Bentoom, has B.Com and Ms Augustina Mensah, Special Advisor HR, holds B.Com, MBA and Daniel Sarkoh Senior Manager, Information Technology, has City & Guilds.

Support for indigenous community
In the coastal districts of the Western Region, the bank has gained popularity due to its technology-based approach to business. It has signed to mobile money by the various telecommunications companies and other international money transfers backed by a network of all branches.

At the community, members say it is easy to walk to the Lower Pra Rural Bank to transfer money to purchase fishing gear or farm inputs, and to pay for virtually anything.
At the Beposo Market, Maame Abena, a trader, says she goes to the market with her passbook instead of travelling miles with bulk cash, put the day’s sales on her phone to pay her debts and deposit the rest in her account.

At Shama Beach, a Chief Fisherman, Nana Anoo Bassaw, said the fishing community had benefited greatly from Lower Pra since its inception in the 1980s.
“We were given loans, to operate but we lacked the know-how, therefore repayment became a problem.
“The bank came up with various interactions, I took loan from them and they took me through how to save, and structured repayment plan, at the time I went to the bank to pay, they told me repayment was part of my saving plan,” he said.