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| Sunday, 10 April 2005 |
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| News Business Features Editorial
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Promoting savings habit in rural sector by L. S. A. Wedaarachchi The Sri Lanka Co-operative Rural Bank Federation, the financial arm of the co-operative movement in Sri Lanka has launched a promotional week commencing April 10 to inculcate the savings habit in the rural sector. All rural bank branches numbering 1,548 in the island will be kept open for customers on Sinhala-Tamil New Year day on April 14, from 8.30 a.m. to 2.00 p.m. to accept savings deposits and all savings depositors will receive a valuable New Year gift. It is believed that the prosperous month of the year for the farming community is April where the harvests of their paddy fields are collected and taken home. Sri Lankans celebrate the second week of April especially the Sinhala and Tamil New Year day with a series of traditional rites and rituals to enjoy the prosperity which they gained by the sweat of their brow. Co-operative rural banks have been collecting the highest savings deposits on the Sinhala and Tamil New Year day, surpassing the commercial banks, and this has been so for the last few years. The co-operative rural bank of Katana Multipurpose Co-operative Society was selected as the best rural bank last year in regard to the highest savings on the Sinhala and Tamil New Year day. GM of the Katana Co-operative Society Sirisena Silva said that the savings deposits alone on the New Year day last year were Rs. 110 million. He was confident that this New Year day achievements will be better than last year. The apex body of the co-operative rural banks in Sri Lanka is the Sri Lanka Co-operative Rural Banks Federation. Thirteen co-operative rural bank unions representing all the multipurpose co-operative societies in the island except the North and East are considered active partners of the Co-operative Rural Bank Federation. A veteran co-operative professional and the chairman of the Wayamba Co-operative Rural Bank Union S. A. Wickramapala was elected as the Chairman of the Co-operative Federation recently. Motivating the rural community for savings, giving loans to members of the rural bank on very low interest rates within a short duration for day to day requirements are the main functions of the Co-operative rural banks. Two types of development project loans are also available for members of the Co-operative Rural Bank Federation and Co-operative Rural Bank unions. The Sri Lanka Co-operative Rural Bank Federation and the Sri Lanka Co-operative Rural Bank Unions encourage Co-operative societies and their members to engage in development activities. The large number of small and medium scale rural based development projects such as petrol sheds, hotels and restaurants, wedding halls, agriculture farms, printing presses, bakeries and water bottling projects are operative all over the island are funded by the Co-operative rural banks. At present two development project loans namely Rs. 1 million development loan and Rs. 250,000 development loans are available for co-operative development projects. The recently appointed chairman of the Sri Lanka Co-operative Rural Bank Federation, S. A. Wickramapala said that the Co-operative Movement has rendered a tireless service to alleviate the hardships of the rural and urban communities under the open and global economic environment. It has proved that the private and public sector business organisations cannot solve problems and the co-operative movement itself has a duty to contribute to the well-being of the masses, he said. |
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