Fidelity Bank has reaffirmed its commitment to supporting women in the agricultural sector, particularly farmers and aggregators, by providing financing to enhance food security and livelihoods across the country.
Mr Atta Yeboah Gyan, the Deputy Managing Director, Fidelity Bank, announced that the financial institution had awarded GH₵1.4 million in grants through initiatives like the ‘Green Tech Innovation Challenge’ to support 17 businesses within the agricultural value chain nationwide.
“Since the beginning of the year, we have partnered with the Mastercard Foundation to create 119 new jobs, sustain over 3,000 existing jobs, and positively impact 2,483 smallholder farmers, 72.9 per cent of whom are women,” he stated.
Speaking during a press soirée held here on Friday, Mr Gyan, observed that the event formed part of the bank’s strategic efforts to strengthen relationship with all relevant stakeholders, including the media to foster collaboration and support.
According to Mr Gyan, through the Fidelity Young Entrepreneurs initiative, the bank had supported 103 small and medium-sized enterprises, disbursing a total of GH₵14.35 million.
He stated that despite recent challenges, particularly with the domestic debt exchange programme that resulted in a loss of GH₵518 million in 2022, the bank achieved a profit of GH₵1.17 billion in 2023.
Moreover, Mr Gyan noted that the bank’s total assets grew by 25 per cent to GH₵17.22 billion, while the capital adequacy ratio improved from 16.8 per cent to 20.9 per cent, reflecting the bank’s strong financial health.
He attributed this success to the bank’s resilience and the adoption of innovations such as digital and agent platforms.
The bank, he said, had rolled out several innovations, including the agency banking model and smart accounts, which target the unbanked population and ensure inclusive banking.
He stated, “These initiatives have significantly improved customer service and operational efficiency in the digital age.”
Mr Gyan further highlighted that the bank prioritises education, economic empowerment, health, and gender equality, noting that, it had positively impacted the lives of approximately 6,409 individuals in the last six months.
He added that in partnership with the Ghana Education Service, the bank was constructing seven new basic-level schools across the country.
This initiative, he said, was aimed at enhancing infrastructure and improve the quality of education for students.
From DANIEL DZIRASAH, SUNYANI
