Covid-19 pandemic and measures set to curb it have not spared any business operations ranging from multinationals to emerging retail outlets. Among the businesses that had been pushed to the brink of winding up was a Mario Shop Ltd, which mainly deals in curtains. Eugène Rukundo, a shareholder of the business said that following the pandemic, the fate of the enterprise was uncertain with losses looming. “When the world faced the Covid-19 pandemic, our business just like most businesses in Rwanda is among those that was highly impacted by the restrictions put in place to prevent the spread of the virus. We struggled and wondered what we would do to recover from the losses we were making,” Rukundo explained. However, having been a client of BPR for 6 years, the bank came to the business’s aid to enable them secure the economic recovery fund established by the government to cushion businesses affected by the pandemic. “As our banking partner that is always with us from the very beginning, BPR came to us and introduced the Economic Recovery Fund (ERF),” “They assisted us through the entire process until we got the funds, we are happy to say that our business is steadily recovering and we are optimistic we will get back to where we used to be before the pandemic,” Rukundo explained. From their experience, the entrepreneur says he has been encouraging colleagues in the business community in various sectors that were hit by the pandemic to seek various avenues that can revive their businesses. This is one of many clients who have benefitted from the bank to access and utilize the economic recovery fund. Across the market, banks have disbursed up to Rwf13 billion. The bank has also supported businesses by restructuring customer loans by granting repayment moratoriums to over 2,800 customers holding 25 per cent of all outstanding loans. Banque Populaire du Rwanda Plc recorded an after-tax profit of Rwf3.8 billion in 2020 amid the global pandemic that has slowed down local and international economic activity.
