Sierra Leone Commercial Bank Pays Dividend
By Fatmatta Kamara

The Sierra Leone Commercial Bank has presented a dividend payment of Le 1.3bn to government, its sole shareholder. A copy of the bank's annual report and accounts for the year 2003 were also presented to the President at a ceremony, which took place at the lodge.

Chairman of the National Privatisation Commission, A R Turay said this year's dividend is twenty-five million Leones higher compared to last year's. In response to the President's call for increased lending especially to local entrepreneurs, Mr. Turay reported that in spite of the fact that the conservatism in lending policy continues, the bank was able to increase its lending, although the majority of this went to the government.

He therefore called on the banks to address the issue of conservatism in their lending policy so that the private sector could benefit more.

He informed President Kabbah that at the bank's last Annual General Meeting, the chairman, Mr. Ibi May-Parker, who had been with the bank for the past thirteen years decided to retire and step down from the chairmanship of the bank.

Outgoing Chairman Ibi May-Parker in his report, noted the steady improvement in the security of the state and the efforts made by Government to get the economy on a progressive path. He congratulated the President for the on-going decentralization process and gave the assurance that once these local governments were established, the bank would join in providing banking facilities where necessary.

He was pleased to report that the Board and Management, despite all obstacles, were able to expand the activities of the bank by opening new branches in Bo, Freetown and Makeni.

During the period under review, he said, customer deposit and current accounts increased from Le87.84Billion in year 2002 to Le.88.9Billion in 2003, but that due to the massive decrease in foreign exchange, cash and short-term deposits went down from Le.93.02Billion to Le87.96Billion.

In addition, Mr. May-Parker said, the bank's total assets increased from Le. 116.67Billion to Le116.84Billion, fixed assets from Le12Billion to Le13Billion, while contribution to government revenue in taxes and duties increased from Le3.8Billion to Le4.3Billion.

Mr. May-Parker commended the Managing Director Mr. Abdulai Kakay for his astute leadership the management and staff, who have conscientiously worked very hard during the year under review to achieve the success the bank has enjoyed.

President Kabbah thanked the management, board and staff for what he called their fine performance. He also congratulated them for the various activities undertaken to get the bank to forge ahead and continue to be the largest commercial bank in the country.

He paid tribute to Mr. May-Parker for his impressive performance over the years, noting that he had always approached his duties with the right attitude and professionalism. Mr. May-Parker, the President went on, had served with distinction in various capacities in Sierra Leone, including the civil service, Njala University, Institute for Public Administration and Management (IPAM) Bank of Sierra Leone and the Sierra Leone Commercial Bank, describing him as a real role model. During this period the president pointed out, Mr. May-Parker collected a lot of ideas, which are vital for the development of the country.

He said at the moment donors are watching to see if the country possesses the absorptive capacity to manage the funds they are providing, but he noted that the country lacked managers. He therefore welcomed Mr. May-Parkers decision to be engaged in the training of managers, saying he can count on the support of government in this venture. He also called on him to continue to share his skills with his compatriots and to make himself available as and when government would need him.

On the question of conservatism on the Bank's lending policy, President Kabbah urged the Chairman of the Privatisation Commission, A R Turay, to get the National Insurance Company to be more proactive, adding that instead of asking for exorbitant premiums they should increase their insurance coverage by working with the banks so that the Banks' fear of non-repayment of loans by people could be allayed, since they would be covered by suitable insurance policies.

He said the National Insurance Company (NIC) could start by opening a window for the Sierra Leone Commercial and Rokel Commercial Banks, adding that through this more Sierra Leoneans would be able to access loans, and the problems of discrimination or conflict between the indigenes and foreigners coming to do business in country would be eliminated, since the tradition has been that Commercial Banks tended to give preferential treatment to foreign business people.

The Managing Director of the Sierra Leone Commercial Bank, Abdulai Kakay, commended the government for the support given to the bank over the years through the Ministry of Finance and the Central Bank, without which the bank would not have been able to function effectively. He praised the President for creating the enabling environment for the bank to continue to operate and for improvement in the macroeconomics situation, which is vital for long-term economic development and wealth creation as well as swift responses to short-term requirements.
The Sierra Leone Commercial Bank, Mr. Kakay said welcomes the nation's participation in the West African Monetary Union process and would be prepared to contribute to the national debate on the implications of the West African Monetary Zone.(WAMZ)

On the bank's corporate responsibility, Mr. Kakay said their policy is not just to deliver profits but also to play an active part in the society in which they operate. To this end they have recently announced substantial support to tertiary educational establishments in Freetown and Kenema and would continue to support many other projects in various parts of the country as part of their societal marketing strategies
He assured President Kabbah that they would continue to mange the affairs of the bank in a fit and proper manner in the interest of all stakeholders.

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