Twifo Rural Bank registers profit

Twifo Agona (C/R), Sept. 28, GNA - The Twifo Rural Bank declared a profit of 295,259,636 cedis after taxation in 2002 as against 209,442,225 cedis in the year 2001.

In addition, various assets including the acquisition of a new double cabin pick-up, counting machines and safes were acquired while efforts have been made to refurbish the new bank premises at Twifo Praso for use.

The chairman of the Board of Director of the bank Professor Paul Buah-Bassuah disclosed these at the bank's 12th annual general meeting at Twifo Agona on Saturday.

Prof. Buah-Bassuah said the bank's total deposits rose from 2.8 billion cedis in 2001 to 5.1 billion in 2002.

He said the bank granted loans to the tune of 1.2 billion cedis in 2001 and 1.8 billion cedis in 2002 to individual and corporate customers, out of which the agriculture sector received the highest of 539.9 million cedis, while the rest went into areas such as salaried workers and funerals, trading, transport and cottage industries. Prof. Buah-Bassuah said the bank purchased cocoa to the tune of 6.5 billion cedis in 2001 and 14.3 billion cedis in the year 2002, adding that the bank could have purchased more than the figures but for the numerous buying companies who paid spot cash to farmers. More

According to professor Buah-Bassuah, the payment of cash to farmers was a threat to the bank's operation since most cocoa farmers who had been granted loans by the bank diverted their produce to such companies, making it very difficult to retrieve the loans from them.

At the meeting the bank presented a cheque for 5 million cedis for the completion of a teacher's bungalow, which has been abandoned. In an address read for him, the Managing Director of the ARB Apex Bank Limited, Mr. Emmanuel Kwapong said a uniform integrated banking application would be installed at all rural banks for efficient and prompt delivery of services to customers.

He said the contract negotiation for the supply of hardware and software for the project was almost completed and expressed the hope that the "pilot sites would be started before the end of the year." Mr Kwapong said the ARB Apex Bank and the rural banks are collaborating closely with the various government programmes to fight the poverty war and mentioned the programmes they are working with as the Social Investment Fund, the Women's Development Fund and the Village Infrastructure Project.