Agribank Soc Trang: Side by Side with Agricultural and Rural Development

2:34:51 PM | 18/9/2012

The agricultural and rural sector is a potential credit market, but not many banks are bold enough to enter this playground. Vietnam Bank for Agriculture and Rural Development - Soc Trang Branch (Agribank SocTrang) takes responsibility for leading the development of rural financial markets, and in recent years, agricultural and rural credit programmes of the branch have made an important contribution to the economic progress of the province.
Identifying Soc Trang as an agricultural province with the majority of people living in rural areas, over recent years, Agribank SocTrang has always regarded investment in loans for agriculture and rural development as a key task to contribute to the socio economic development of locality, and the main subject to the development of business activities. In this spirit, over the years the branch has enlisted the leadership of committees, local authorities, closely collaborated with relevant industries and agencies, creating favourable conditions for realizing the agricultural and rural credit policy in the locality in a profound way. In addition to 14 branches located in district centres, central economic zones and industrial parks, the branch also is facilitated by the local leaders to build 5 transaction offices in rural areas, helping Agribank SocTrang have its rightful place close to farmers; and also facilitating farmers' access to transactions. At present, all the communes in the province have credit officers meeting the borrowing needs of farmers.
 
Accompanying the agriculture and rural development policies in SocTrang and over the country, recently, Agribank SocTrang has concentrated on loans for agricultural production to transform the crop structure from ineffective seedlings and gardens to highly efficient seedlings, creating abundant raw materials for agricultural exports and enhancing land use value. In 2011, the Branch continued to implement the interest rate support in the spirit of the direction of the Prime Minister, the Governor of the State Bank and the chairman of the Agribank board; strengthen investment in agricultural and rural areas under the Government Decree 41/2010/ND-CP; and promote implementation of Decision 63/2010/QD-TTg of the Government on policy to support reducing post-harvest losses of agricultural and aquatic products. Results of rural agricultural loans of Agribank SocTrang in 2011 reached VND6.659 billion, accounting for 93 percent of total loans. In the first 6 months of 2012, outstanding loans to agriculture and rural areas were VND7,166,514 million, accounting for 93.49 percent of total loans.
 
For convenience in helping farmers to access capital, Agribank Soc Trang has directed district branches, in collaboration with the Peasants’ Association and the Women’s Association, to build effective production and business bank loans models to unfreeze credit transfer channels to households and individuals in the area, particularly for agriculture and rural areas. Since then the model is stably growing, creating favourable conditions for the implementation of Decree 41/2010/ND-CP of the Government on policies for agriculture and rural credit innovation.
 
Along with business development, Agribank SocTrang positively responds to the social security programme, contributing to reducing difficulties for families under preferential treatment policies and poor households in rural areas.
 
Promoting these achievements, in the future, in response to the new rural construction program, Agribank Soc Trang will further enhance the mobilization of local capital and funding support from the central level to investment loans with reasonable interest rates, consistent with the requirements of the market, in order to create favourable conditions for enterprises and households engaged in agriculture, rural access to loans, and to reduce pressure on the cost of capital and profit. Also the Branch will work closely and frequently with the agriculture sector, unions and the locality to broadly implement improved and more effective loans for businesses, households and individuals to purchase machinery and equipment for agricultural production and post-harvest handling of agricultural and aquatic products. Director Nguyen Tan Buu stressed: "Although now the funding is facing difficulties due to unfair competitive interest rates from some credit institutions, to ensure investment capital for the agricultural sector, Agribank Soc Trang will actively mobilize and lend capital in the right and efficient way to contribute to economic development in the province."
 
Song Thanh