Don’t delay releasing loans, banks urged Minister Chimene
Minister Chimene

Minister Chimene

Obert Chifamba Manicaland Bureau
Banks must not delay releasing loans, but should appreciate that loan applicants will be working within certain timelines that allow their targeted enterprises to be profitable, Minister of State for Manicaland Provincial Affairs Cde Mandi Chimene has said. Cde Chimene made the remarks when she addressed delegates attending a Cooperative Federation Empowerment Funds workshop in Mutare last Friday. She was guest of honour at the event that was attended by officials from different Government departments and ministries, cooperative members and representatives of the banking industry.

“Banks must try to be responsive and give people loans at the time they want them. They must not wait for a time that they find proper for them, as applicants will be trying to grab opportunities that would have opened up. Opportunities are not permanent; they must be taken as they come and once they are gone they may never be found again,” she said.

Cde Chimene took a swipe at loan beneficiaries that later diverted the money to other purposes other than those for which it was borrowed.

“There are some people who are in the habit of abusing the money they borrow. They use it for other purposes instead of fulfilling the intentions they had when they borrowed it. Remember, the banks will still be waiting to recover their money plus some interest, so abusing it will only make life difficult for the borrower, as they still have to repay it to the last cent even if they did not use it for the intended purpose,” she said.

“If the money was borrowed to support a farming project, then we need to make sure the produce is utilised wisely through value addition and seeking lucrative markets even outside our borders. There is a huge demand for Zimbabwean agricultural products, as they are produced organically, so cooperatives need to take advantage of such opportunities. The Reserve Bank of Zimbabwe (RBZ)was expected to unveil a funding facility for cooperatives at the end of the workshop. The workshop was running under the theme, “Informed Community, Empowered Society”.

Minister Chimene said the impact of cooperatives was cross-cutting — from housing to agriculture and trading. She said through the Ministry of Small and Medium Enterprises and Cooperatives Development, Government was targeting to unlock the full potential of cooperatives as enshrined in point 4 of President Mugabe’s 10 Point Plan for economic growth.

Advancing beneficiation and value addition to agricultural and mining resources, she said, fell under point 2 of the same document. Minister Chimene encouraged cooperatives to register with Government and comply with councils’ regulations to enhance development. Manicaland has 1 570 cooperatives, with a total membership of 14 000 covering such sectors as housing, village banks or SACCOS, trading, farming, catering, transport, fishing and mining.

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