|
Back to Index
Stanbic
US$20M facility a vote of confidence in youths
Youth Forum
December 05, 2011
The availing
of a US$11 Million youth empowerment facility by one of the country's
leading banks, Stanbic Bank, is a sign of the ever-growing confidence
the corporate sector is gaining in the country's youths as entrepreneurs
and the custodians and restorers of our battered economy.
The fund comes
hard on the heels of another US$11 million youth development fund
launched by Old Mutual as well as a US$200,000 revolving fund by
Meikles and Interfresh. We urge other institutions to join the trend
and provide more funds as the current availed facilities, though
noble, still fall far short for a country whose youth population
stands at 67%.
We applaud Stanbic
Bank, who has been awarded the Zimbabwe and Africa's Banker of the
Year Award among other awards by leading international banking publication,
The Banker. The Stanbic initiative will go a long way in poverty
alleviation and employment creation for the country's younger generation.
The onus is
now on the government to jealously protect the youths' project through
implementation of policies aimed at stimulating the exponential
growth of entities created through such funds. We applaud the Government
for the introduction of the Private Business Corporation initiative
which makes it easier and cheaper to register and run a business,
but more needs to be done to ensure that products produced in Zimbabwe
are not subjected to unfair competition from low quality products
from outside the country. The government should also ensure that
small enterprises formed are incorporated into the value chain to
ensure their sustainability.
Meanwhile, the
Zimbabwe Youth Council has released tips on accessing the Old Mutual
US$11m loans. In order to access the loans, the youths should go
to their nearest CABS branch and open an account. The youth being
considered are young people between the ages of 18 and 35 who have
bankable projects.
According to
the Ministry of Youth Development, Indigenization and Empowerment:
- All projects
must have potential to generate sustainable income for
the project promoters and create employment for other youths.
- Projects
and services should be marketable.
- Projects
should preferably use locally available resources
In order to
access the Old Mutual Youth Empowerment Fund, one is required to
provide:
- Detailed
business plan.
- CABS Loan
Application Form
- CABS Account
- Identification
documents
The loan threshold
per business plan is US5 000. According to the terms of the facility
no loan shall exceed a maximum of 36 months. Furthermore the grace
period for the loan repayment is dependent on the gestation of the
project. Most importantly there is no collateral required for loan
to be granted. The vetting process takes up to a maximum of two
weeks.
Visit the Youth
Forum fact
sheet
Please credit www.kubatana.net if you make use of material from this website.
This work is licensed under a Creative Commons License unless stated otherwise.
TOP
|
