BB to ask banks for achieving farm loan disbursement target
Monday, 18 October 2010
Siddique Islam
The central bank will ask the commercial banks for taking effective measures to achieve agriculture loans disbursement target by the end of this fiscal year, officials said.
Bangladesh Bank (BB) will give the instruction at review meetings with the banks, both public and private, scheduled to be held at the central bank on October 24-25 respectively.
"We're now working to achieve the overall agriculture credit disbursement target by the end of this fiscal year," a BB senior official told the FE Sunday, adding that the central bank advised the banks to disburse farm loans with emphasis on productive sectors.
The central bank will review the performances of eight nationalized commercial banks (NCBs) and financial institutions on October 24 next while senior officials of local and foreign private commercial banks will also sit with the BB officials on October 25.
The eight state-owned banks and financial institutions are: Sonali Bank Limited, Janata Bank Limited, Agrani Bank Limited, Rupali Bank Limited, Bangladesh Krishi Bank (BKB), Rajshahi Krishi Unnayan Bank (RAKUB), Bangladesh Rural Development Board (BRDB) and Bangladesh Samabaya Bank Limited (BSBL).
"We'll review the overall agriculture loans disbursement and recovery situation at the meetings," the central bank official said adding that the BB would want to known the activities of micro-finance institutions (MFIs) for disbursement of farm loans.
The banks, having not enough branches in the rural areas, are allowed to use non-governmental organisations (NGOs) linkage for disbursement of the farm credit.
Agricultural credit disbursements recorded a growth of 32.473 per cent in the first quarter of the current fiscal year against the corresponding period of the previous fiscal.
All banks and financial institutions disbursed Tk 25.33 billion during July-September period of the fiscal 2010-11 (FY11) compared to Tk 19.12 billion of the same period of the last fiscal, according to the central bank statistics.
The loans have been given to 21 different agro and rural sectors which include crop, fisheries, livestock, agricultural and irrigation equipments, solar irrigation system, high yielding variety of crops, tissue culture, jute cultivation, nursery, marginal and small farmers, sharecroppers, salt and betel leaf cultivation, apiculture, mushroom cultivation, handlooms, silk industry, cotton cultivation, rural finance, credit to women engaged in income generating agriculture and allied agricultural activities. The recovery of farm loans, however, rose to Tk 30.21 billion during the period under review from Tk 26.07 billion of the corresponding period of the previous fiscal, the BB data showed.
On July 21 this year, the central bank announced an agriculture credit policy and programme with a disbursement target of Tk 126.17 billion for FY11, projecting 9.6 per cent growth over that of the previous fiscal.
The central bank will ask the commercial banks for taking effective measures to achieve agriculture loans disbursement target by the end of this fiscal year, officials said.
Bangladesh Bank (BB) will give the instruction at review meetings with the banks, both public and private, scheduled to be held at the central bank on October 24-25 respectively.
"We're now working to achieve the overall agriculture credit disbursement target by the end of this fiscal year," a BB senior official told the FE Sunday, adding that the central bank advised the banks to disburse farm loans with emphasis on productive sectors.
The central bank will review the performances of eight nationalized commercial banks (NCBs) and financial institutions on October 24 next while senior officials of local and foreign private commercial banks will also sit with the BB officials on October 25.
The eight state-owned banks and financial institutions are: Sonali Bank Limited, Janata Bank Limited, Agrani Bank Limited, Rupali Bank Limited, Bangladesh Krishi Bank (BKB), Rajshahi Krishi Unnayan Bank (RAKUB), Bangladesh Rural Development Board (BRDB) and Bangladesh Samabaya Bank Limited (BSBL).
"We'll review the overall agriculture loans disbursement and recovery situation at the meetings," the central bank official said adding that the BB would want to known the activities of micro-finance institutions (MFIs) for disbursement of farm loans.
The banks, having not enough branches in the rural areas, are allowed to use non-governmental organisations (NGOs) linkage for disbursement of the farm credit.
Agricultural credit disbursements recorded a growth of 32.473 per cent in the first quarter of the current fiscal year against the corresponding period of the previous fiscal.
All banks and financial institutions disbursed Tk 25.33 billion during July-September period of the fiscal 2010-11 (FY11) compared to Tk 19.12 billion of the same period of the last fiscal, according to the central bank statistics.
The loans have been given to 21 different agro and rural sectors which include crop, fisheries, livestock, agricultural and irrigation equipments, solar irrigation system, high yielding variety of crops, tissue culture, jute cultivation, nursery, marginal and small farmers, sharecroppers, salt and betel leaf cultivation, apiculture, mushroom cultivation, handlooms, silk industry, cotton cultivation, rural finance, credit to women engaged in income generating agriculture and allied agricultural activities. The recovery of farm loans, however, rose to Tk 30.21 billion during the period under review from Tk 26.07 billion of the corresponding period of the previous fiscal, the BB data showed.
On July 21 this year, the central bank announced an agriculture credit policy and programme with a disbursement target of Tk 126.17 billion for FY11, projecting 9.6 per cent growth over that of the previous fiscal.