Aseri Msangi

Njombe Community Bank (NJOCOBA) has dished out 3.6bn/- in loans up to December 2011 to its customers in a strategy to improve their lives.

However, NJOCOBA has succeeded to increase its revenue to 554m/- of which the profit for that year reached 10m/-.
Speaking to Njombe Regional Commissioner Capt (rtd) Aseri Msangi, Njocuba chairman Twilumba Ulaya said the bank started officially in September 2010 with 15.8m/-, adding that they are now making progress. Currently, he said the bank has 5,099 accounts.
Ulaya said that up to the end of 2011 it recorded 1.8bn/- in deposits. 

He also pointed out that during the year 2011 more than 55,000 shares worth 55m/- were purchased making a total of 442,000 worth of 442m/- by June this year.
He urged people to buy more shares as 500m/- worth of stakes are yet to be purchased.

She also said that loan repayment has not been all that good for entire period they have been dishing out loans.
At least 267m/- of the money lent out, which is about 18 percent of all loans is not yet repaid, he said adding that three civil cases in which the bank is demanding 72.4m/- from borrowers are still in court up.

For his part, Capt Aseri Msangi urged residents of the newly created region to join the bank, saying he would encourage people living in other parts of the country, but originally from the region to also join.

He asked the management of the bank and its board members to set up strategies and beware shareholders who may wish to monopolise the bank’s capital by buying all the shares and kick others out, which would be against the whole concept as a community bank.