Women’s bank to be reformed: JPM
What you need to know:
The President said the performance of TWB had been wanting, requiring urgent reforms by its management to survive in a competitive environment and grow. He noted that the bank had neglected to serve women, contrary to its goals when it was formed.
Dar es Salaam. President John Magufuli yesterday said the Women Bank will be reformed to enable it serve the purpose for which it was established and also compete with other commercial banks.
The President said the performance of TWB had been wanting, requiring urgent reforms by its management to survive in a competitive environment and grow. He noted that the bank had neglected to serve women, contrary to its goals when it was formed. He was addressing the televised ninth general meeting of the CCM Women Wing (UWT) yesterday in Dodoma.
“Men are actually the ones who are major borrowers of funds from the bank. We can’t continue to invest in the bank that doesn’t serve women as it is intended. The beneficiaries were supposed to be women,” he said of the bank that is currently under a new management and board that has been tasked with the job to turn around its fortunes.
He directed incoming UWT leaders to complement the government’s efforts to develop the bank to achieve its target of serving women.
In a report tabled in Parliament in April this year, the Controller and Auditor General observed that TWB’s core capital had fallen to below the minimum requirements contrary to regulations 5 and 9 of the Banking and Financial Institutions (Capital Adequacy) Regulations.
However, the government has since appointed a new board of directors and picked Mr Japhet Justine as the managing director. An investigation was also ordered to establish if there was criminal culpability in the past that almost brought down the bank.
The eight-year-old bank made some gains during the third quarter of this year, with its customers’ deposits rising to Sh15.8 billion from Sh13.8 billion during the second quarter.
Earlier yesterday, President Magufuli urged UWT members to elect committed leaders to serve it accordingly and help transform the party in general.
“I advise you to elect leaders who will make a marked change in the party. The government will continue to address challenges facing women by putting in place strategies to empower them financially.”
On the same occasion, Vice President Samia Suluhu Hassan echoed the Head of State’s advice to UWT members to elect good leaders who will contribute to the transformation of the council and the party in general.
