Apex Bank to Computerise Rural Banks

Abokobi (G/R), Oct. 19, GNA - The Apex Bank Limited on Saturday said all Rural Banks are to be equipped with the state-of-the-art computers, communications gargets and banking software to enhance rural banking.

Mr E. K. Kwapong, Managing Director of Apex Bank, stated this in an address read on his behalf by Mrs Grace Bartels-Kodwo, Supervisor, Accra, Clearing Centre of Apex Bank at the 11th Annual General Meeting of the Abokobi Area Rural Bank, at Abokobi near Accra. He said the computerisation project would interface with other equipment such as the ATMs to enhance customers' access to withdrawal outlets.

Mr Kwapong said the computers would also be linked to the Apex Bank's regional offices and the Headquarters in a wide area network to facilitate financial reporting.

He said training programmes have been designed to upgrade the skills of rural bank officials.

Mr Kwapong said: "It is our fervent hope that these tailor-made programmes would address identified weaknesses in the operations of rural banks and put them on the right road to dominate the banking sector in the country."

He urged rural banks to introduce micro-financing into their operations saying " you have in your catchments area a large number of small-scale operators who can easily be grouped, trained, and assisted with funds to pursue their various trades."

"The opinion of the Apex Bank is that we need to tackle the issue of poverty alleviation through financial outlays to individuals and groups who cannot be assisted by the big banks whose only focus are the big time operators."

Mr Kwapong said a micro-finance desk has been established to assist rural banks to formulate new programmes and activities to bring relief to the masses who require assistance and direction to be able to overcome poverty.

Mr Kwapong lauded the Abokobi Area Rural Bank for its role in promoting agriculture, cottage industry, micro-economic ventures and development of facilities such as water, sanitation and the award of scholarships to needy but brilliant children.

Mr Samuel Dsane, Manager of the Abokobi Area Rural Bank in an interview with the Ghana News Agency, requested the Bank of Ghana and the law enforcement agencies to strictly enforce the law on the issuance of dud cheques in the country.

He said this would restore confidence in the use of personal cheques and help reduce the occasional printing of large sums of higher denominations and prevent the difficulties of carrying huge sums of cash for business transactions.

He said: "Financial transaction other than the issuance of physical cash could be enhanced to reduce the pressure on the demand for cedis only if the laws criminalizing dud cheques are tightened and enforced." Mr Dsane, explained that the Central Bank must encourage the use of bank draft, visa card, personal cheques, and develop other forms of financial transactions to reduce the circulation of large volume of physical cash.

He said the usage of physical cash in modern business transactions was unattractive and a highly risky venture in view of the recent highway robberies and the volume of cash involved due to the rapid depreciation of the cedis.

Mr Dsane said Banks and the business community needed to mount public education on monetary transaction other than usage of physical cash to reduce risk and to also build up confidence in the issuance and acceptability of non-physical cash as legal tender.

The Bank Manager, who was a former Operations Manager of Barclays Bank, Ghana, Limited, suggested that the refusal to accept non-physical cash as legal tender should also be made a criminal offence to force the business community to recognise and use it. 19 Oct. 2003

Attention recipients, item 02 ends first cast.