In an effort to cushion government’s effort to contain and manage the spread of the coronavirus pandemic in the country, Nsoatreman Rural Bank at Nsoatre in the Sunyani-West Municipality of Bono Region has offered a helping hand to six health facilities in its catchment area.
To enhance COVID-19 precautionary measures at the health facilities, the bank has donated items such as veronica buckets and accessories, boxes of lifebuoy soap, gallons of liquid soap, boxes of alcohol-based hand sanitizers, and packs of paper tissue among others.
The facilities that benefited from the benevolence of Nsoatreman Rural Bank are Atronie Health Centre, Chiraa Clinic, Jinijini Clinic, Yamfo Health Centre, Abrefi Health Centre at Techiman and Nsoatre Health Centre.
The General Manager of Nsoatreman Rural Bank, Mrs. Agnes Grimmon-Intsiful in an interview with the B&FT said the bank opted to support less-privileged health facilities because staff-for that matter frontline workers there are comparatively vulnerable as very little of personal protective equipment (PPE) and medical supplies get to them on time.
The donation she indicated, was the beginning of the bank’s readiness to complement the national fight against the virus. “This is just our widow’s mite and it’s in line with our corporate social responsibility. The board and management of the bank are committed to helping the government in our own way, especially within our operational areas to defeat the pandemic.”
Commenting on the impact of COVID-19 on the rural banking sector, Mrs. Grimmon-Intsiful stated the uncertainties surrounding the management and the unpredictable end of the abnormal era has kept the sector out of gear, making nonsense of 2020 projections and outlook, adding the future will be bleak should the situation persist for long.
“We have to reschedule loans repayment to ease the burden on our customers, mostly small and micro-enterprise operators. Their businesses are on their needs and intervention of such has become necessary to help save the economy. Some people have even returned facilities they took just before the outbreak of the virus in the country in March,” she said.
