Tanzania: Banks Set Friendly Lending Conditions to Women

MOST women entrepreneurs in the country can easily acquire loans, thanks to friendly conditions set by lenders in their bid to address challenges impeding small scale women traders in accessing financing.

The NMB Bank Head of Government Business, Vicky Bishubo said that the bank has created products like Fanikiwa Account to empower women economically and boost their capital.

“Since we introduced Fanikisha Account, it has received a great response as many women, especially small scale traders, have been going for it after realising that conditions set by the bank are friendly and allow them to acquire loans with low interests quickly and with ease,” she said.

Ms Bishubo made the remarks during the launch of the book Continuity with Vision the Roadmap to Success for President Samia Suluhu Hassan in Dar es Salaam.

She said her financial institution was one of the stakeholders that succeeded in the identification and launch activities of the book that highlights the success work President Samia makes in the government.

“In a short time, we have given 9265 loans of about 30bn/- to women entrepreneurs, so when we say NMB Karibu, this is the real meaning,” she said.

Speaking about the book on behalf of NMB Chief Executive Officer (CEO), Ruth Zaipuna, she noted that they will continue to support efforts made by the government and academics in publishing books, which raise issues and possible solutions to challenges affecting lives of ordinary Tanzanians.

Launching the book on behalf of Prime Minister Kassim Majaliwa, Minister of Education, Science, and Technology, Prof Adolf Mkenda thanked the Eastern and Southern African Universities Research Programme (ESAURP) that facilitated the creation of the book, which carried the image of Tanzania on the life of their leader.

Equally, he thanked the institutions that made the gathering possible including NMB bank and asked them not to stop, saying the government relies on them as well as other stakeholder to empower its citizens economically.

Elaborating, he asked the people to read the book to build awareness as Tanzania needs to make major reforms in education, adding that they may find themselves left behind if they do not make efforts to read books about their lives.