National Association of Microfinance Bank (NAMB) has assured Microfinance Bank’s customers of effective services in Micro, Small and Medium Enterprises (MSMEs)
They are the engine of growth in any economy, whether they are developed or developing. Issues that affect them should be treated with seriousness and as a priority.
Microfinance banks play vital roles in providing funding for operators of MSMEs.
There were concerns among small business operators and other stakeholders when the Central Bank of Nigeria (CBN) announced the closure of 42 microfinance banks.
However, the National Secretariat of the National Association of Microfinance Banks (NAMB) has urged its members and entrepreneurs not to worry, saying that the banks whose licences were withdrawn had ceased to operate some years ago.
In an interview, Caleb Shirkir Huhu, the Executive Secretary of NAMB, said that the association supported the action of the CBN to sanitize the microfinance industry in the country.
He said that the affected banks had stopped operating about three and four years ago and that the apex was only updating its records by revoking the licences of the affected banks. He stated that the association was in support of the actions taken by the CBN to clean the sector and ensure that only healthy banks were left to continue to provide services to their numerous customers at the base of society.
“We want to have healthy microfinance banks that can provide effective services to Nigerians at this difficult economic time. Microfinance banks are key players in financial inclusion process and we want our members to do the right things to deepen financial inclusion in the country by providing effective service to the people at the bottom of the pyramid.
“So we are encouraging CBN and the National Insurance Deposit Insurance Corporation to continue to clean up the sector and collaborate with the association in detecting unhealthy banks in the sector.”
Nuhu said that the association was also carrying out stress tests to find out unhealthy banks in the sector. He assured Nigerians that microfinance banks operating in the country are healthy and people should patronize and do business with them.
The executive secretary posited that the major role of microfinance banks is to support small and medium enterprises in the country, adding that microfinance banks are the key tools to support small and medium businesses across the world.
He stated that the proposed plan by the Small and Medium Enterprises Development Agency’s plan to float microfinance bank showed that there was room for growth in the industry, adding that other government agencies to do the same, because, according to him, “the market is wide and opportunities abound there is need for more investors to come into the sector.”
