Agribank on course against defaulters
Agribank is looking for property valuators as it steps up action against farmers who owe it half a billion dollars.
ELLANIE SMIT
Following an announcement by Agribank Namibia that it will take action against defaulting borrowers, the bank is seeking experts in property valuation services.
According to an advertisement the service providers will be expected to conduct land and building valuations which include residential, commercial farmland and industrial property development projects.
The bank said the service providers must be able to carry out valuations in all regions of Namibia on short notice and should assume responsibility for their assessment values in the event of a disputed outcome.
It further said that valuation reports must include the market value of the property, forced-sale value in the event of business failure and reinstatement value for the purpose of insurance.
Agribank Namibia earlier this month announced that it had enlisted debt collectors to start collecting outstanding loan instalments of N$500 million. This process will start next month.
The bank has disbursed loans of N$2.4 billion and will make use of external debt collectors for the first time.
According to bank spokesperson Rino Muranda the response from defaulting clients has been encouraging as some have already contacted the bank to make repayment arrangements.
He said they were unaware of any farmers who had surrendered their farms to date.
“Some farmers have already started making payments, while others have started making arrangements and we encourage those clients who are unable to make the required payments to contact the bank and make suitable arrangements,” he told Namibian Sun.
Muranda said normal collections continued through the bank’s recoveries division.
He said it must also be noted that not all loans were in arrears.
“As indicated previously, the bank has a loan book of N$2.4 billion, of which N$500 million is in arrears. The remainder of loans are up to date or not due for repayment as yet.”
He said Agribank was approaching its financial year-end in March and would soon report on its performance during the year under review.
“We can safely state that the bank will meet its financial targets for this year and is in a liquid position to advance further loans for the promotion and development of agricultural activities in the country as per its mandate,” he added.
Following an announcement by Agribank Namibia that it will take action against defaulting borrowers, the bank is seeking experts in property valuation services.
According to an advertisement the service providers will be expected to conduct land and building valuations which include residential, commercial farmland and industrial property development projects.
The bank said the service providers must be able to carry out valuations in all regions of Namibia on short notice and should assume responsibility for their assessment values in the event of a disputed outcome.
It further said that valuation reports must include the market value of the property, forced-sale value in the event of business failure and reinstatement value for the purpose of insurance.
Agribank Namibia earlier this month announced that it had enlisted debt collectors to start collecting outstanding loan instalments of N$500 million. This process will start next month.
The bank has disbursed loans of N$2.4 billion and will make use of external debt collectors for the first time.
According to bank spokesperson Rino Muranda the response from defaulting clients has been encouraging as some have already contacted the bank to make repayment arrangements.
He said they were unaware of any farmers who had surrendered their farms to date.
“Some farmers have already started making payments, while others have started making arrangements and we encourage those clients who are unable to make the required payments to contact the bank and make suitable arrangements,” he told Namibian Sun.
Muranda said normal collections continued through the bank’s recoveries division.
He said it must also be noted that not all loans were in arrears.
“As indicated previously, the bank has a loan book of N$2.4 billion, of which N$500 million is in arrears. The remainder of loans are up to date or not due for repayment as yet.”
He said Agribank was approaching its financial year-end in March and would soon report on its performance during the year under review.
“We can safely state that the bank will meet its financial targets for this year and is in a liquid position to advance further loans for the promotion and development of agricultural activities in the country as per its mandate,” he added.
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