The National Bank of Angola (BNA) made available last year a stock of 3.22 billion kwanzas to commercial banks, under Notice No. 10/2024, to finance projects in the productive sector in the provinces of Lunda Norte, Lunda Sul, Moxico, Moxico Leste, Cuando and Cubango.
The BNA’s Director for Credit Monitoring, Veloso Pedro, disclosed the information a few days ago in the municipality of Cassengo, Lunda Sul province, during a press conference held on the sidelines of a seminar on “Financing Instruments for the Economy and Alternative Payment Methods”.
The official acknowledged that the amount made available to promote agriculture, industry, trade and services in the eastern region of the country did not meet the BNA’s expectations when compared to other provinces, due to the low participation of local entrepreneurs.
According to Veloso Pedro, difficulties in processing documentation, low financial capacity and lack of knowledge of procedures are identified as the main obstacles faced by entrepreneurs and individuals in accessing bank credit.
He also recognised that, despite the existence of significant bureaucracy on the part of banking institutions in granting credit, the office he leads has acted as a facilitator and supervisor to put an end to such practices, which partly hinder economic progress.
The acting Governor of Lunda Sul, Cláudio Pemessa, encouraged local entrepreneurs and individuals to join the credit programmes provided by the BNA, with the aim of strengthening the business environment in the region.
The seminar, which sought to publicise opportunities for accessing productive sector credit under BNA Notice No. 10/2024, addressed topics related to “Access to Credit”, “Rules for the Establishment/Access to Microcredit”, “Financing Programmes and Credit Lines” and “Contributions of Guarantee Funds in Mitigating Financial Risks”.
BNA Notice No. 10/2024 mainly concerns the provision of credit to the productive sector of the economy (industry, agriculture, among others) and requires banks to allocate part of their assets to the financing of productive projects, with the objective of economic diversification, import substitution and support for small and medium-sized enterprises.
Source: O País
