Rural banks throughout the country have granted 144.85 billion cedis as loans to customers as at 31st December 2001.

Total assets base of the banks stood at 516.33 billion cedis whilst the total deposits and shareholders' funds mobilised stood at 380.84 billion and 73.91 billion cedis respectively.

Mr Dela Selormey, Chief Manager, Banking Supervision Department, Bank of Ghana, announced this at the annual general meeting of Gomoa Rural Bank at Apam at the weekend.

Mr Selormey said the success story indicated a growing public confidence in the rural banking system and appealed to the banks to increase their capital base in view of the change in the inflationary rate.

He said only 30 banks had complied with the Bank of Ghana's directive to increase their capital base to 100 million cedis as at 31st December 2001.

Mr Selormey commended officials of the Gomoa Rural Bank for working hard to raise its capital adequacy ratio from negative 21 per cent to 98.44 per cent within the last five years.

Mr James Eric Nkrumah, President of the Central Regional Chapter of the Association of Rural Banks, urged shareholders to repay loans granted by the banks and to refrain from activities that could tarnish their image.

In his report, Mr Andrew B. Simpson, chairman of the Board of Directors of Gomoa Rural Bank, said members were committed to ensuring that the bank became one of the best in the Central Region by 2005.

He said the banks deposit has increased from 779 million cedis in 2000 to 1.2 billion cedis in 2001 and its investment also increased from 614 million cedis the previous year to 1.157 billion cedis during the period under review.

The bank made a gross interest of 343.5 million cedis as against 181.45 million cedis the previous year.