Amuana-Praso (ER), Sept. 29, GNA-The Mponua Rural Bank at Amuana Praso in the Birim North District made a net profit of GHC 60,104 last year after plunging into a loss of GHC 20,118 two years ago. The Chairman of the Board of Directors of the bank, Mr George Osei Ameyaw, announced this at the 16th Annual General Meeting of the bank at Amuana-Praso at the weekend.

He attributed the success story to the introduction of a five- year Corporate Plan by the Board and Management of the bank. The corporate plan covers future expenses of operation measures to mobilize working capital, deployment of funds strategies, capacity building with inherent succession programmes capitalization, face lifting of business offices and expectation of key operational parameters.

He said deposit of the bank rose from GHC 2,067,504 in 2008 to GHC 2,740,903 last year representing an increase of 32 per cent while its total assets grew by 30 per cent; from GHC 2.3m two years ago to GHC 3.04 in 2009.

Mr. Ameyaw said with that performance, the bank was able to grant loans and overdraft worth GHC 1.3m to its customers in Agriculture, trading, transport as well as salary workers last year as against a lending package of GHC 1.1m given out in 2008. He said the bank had been able to mobilize GHC 57,116 from its share holders and had successfully recovered GHC 1.1m representing a recovery rate of 86 per cent. Mr. Ameyaw said the figure was against the Bank of Ghana share capital requirement of GHC 150,000, a deficit of GHC 92,884 to meet if the bank wanted to remain in business and therefore urged the shareholders to increase their share capital to meet the Bank of Ghana requirement.

In an address read on his behalf, the Managing Director of the ARB Apex Bank, Mr. Eric Osei-Bonsu, advised rural banks to continue to adopt effective loan monitoring strategies to ensure that all loans granted to customers were fully paid on time. He urged rural banks to manage their advance portfolio well to avoid a situation of large amount of non-performing which could crush them. Mr. Osei-Bonsu said in light of the complex and rapidly changing environment, rural banks should strengthened their internal control systems to ensure that their operations were carried out in an efficient manner.