Rwanda Development Bank (BRD) is to allocate a total of Rwf30 billion that will be used as loans to develop projects year.

The development bank in which government is the biggest shareholder with over 60 percent shares aims at eradicating poverty especially in rural areas through investment in agriculture and other projects as well.

"As a development bank, we extend loans to companies, cooperatives that want to expand their businesses,” Jack Kayonga the Managing Director told Business Times recently.

This year the bank projects loan approvals worth Rwf30.6 billion although it estimates disbursement to be at Rwf23.6 billion with its portfolio totaling Rwf53.8 billion.

The financial institution has been investing in various sectors including energy, health, tourism, agriculture among others.

The big budget can be attributed to last year’s general performance of the bank which was better than the previous years.

Kayonga said that the good performance was due to the strong and continued support they have received from the government as well as the bank’s management efficiency.

"We have also created a business development fund that will help in the development of Small and Medium Enterprises (SMEs),” explained Kayonga.

In order to improve the services and reach clients, the bank is planning to open two new branches this year adding to the two existing branches.

Last year, BRD posted a net profit of Rwf2.2 billion compared to Rwf700 million profits it had earned in 2008 and it projects its net profits this year to hit Rwf3 billion.

The products offered by the bank include loans with an interest rate ranging between 8 to 15 percent, leasing and trade financing which is a new product.

The asset base of the organization also grew by 5 percent from Rwf41 billion in 2008 to Rwf43 billion in 2009. Last year saw a decline in the non-performing loans from 12 percent to 6.5 percent.

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