Mildred Siabi-Mensah, GNA

Shama, May 26, GNA – The Lower Pra Rural Bank made considerable gains from its investments in Government and Bank of Ghana securities before the Domestic Debt Exchange Programme (DDEP).

Specific policy reforms, which enhanced the bank’s performance were interest-rate liberalisation, decontrol of credit allocation, and the removal of non-performing assets to the Non-Performing Assets Recovery Trust.

However, major financial regulations that depressed the banks performance were the high level of secondary and primary reserve requirements.

Also loan recovery generally appeared to remain a problem even though loan applications were better appraised.

“It is clear that a lot of work has to been done in this area through more pro-active monitoring and supervision of borrowers,” Ms Aba Dawood, the Board Chairperson of the Bank, said during the 36th Annual General Meeting on Friday.

The bank, she noted, was adopting tech-tools to advance its operations as E-banking was being introduced to transact banking business across the country.

During the period under review the bank’s total deposits increased from GHc 183.89m in 2022 to GHc 236.1m in 2023, representing an increase of 28 per cent.

It offered advances to its numerous customers in the form of sundry loans, group loans, loans to salaried workers, overdrafts, consumer goods, and vehicle and building loans.