No plan to revive SME Bank: Schlettwein

After witnessing the collapse of the SME Bank, government has no plan to resuscitate the now liquidated SME Bank, finance minister Calle Schlettwein has said.

Instead, government wants to push for a number of development schemes and financial assistance schemes to address SME development, the minister said last week.

Government wants to “de-concentrate from a commercial bank alone to a number of instruments that cover the SMEs better,” Schlettwein said when asked if they had plans to resurrect the now defunct bank.

Government pumped about N$470 million into the bank since its establishment.

Schlettwein said government is duty-bound to come to the aide of those who do not have collateral.

“The need for financing in the SME sector is for people who find it difficult to bring the collateral to the table,” he said.

Consultation in this regard is ongoing at the cabinet committee on treasury.

Stakeholders such as the ministries of youth, trade and employment creation will all be engaged to ensure that the new model speaks to the plight of SMEs, the minister said.

Schlettwein said through the new financial instrument, government intends to come up with a skills-based loan scheme.

This loan will target university and technical and vocational education and training graduates, to get financial assistance to start their own businesses.

So far, a structure for the model has been created and there are proposals on accessing the said loan.

The SME Bank was declared insolvent in 2017 and its winding-up process commenced after a dodgy investment of close to N$200 million, which was allegedly invested in foreign entities and could not be traced. - Nampa