AgriBank needs $50m for recapitalisation

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HARARE — The government-controlled Agricultural Development Bank of Zimbabwe (Agribank) remains severely undercapitalised after it was allocated $4 million in the 2014 national budget, much lower than the $50 million it requires to recapitalise, an official said on Tuesday.

HARARE — The government-controlled Agricultural Development Bank of Zimbabwe (Agribank) remains severely undercapitalised after it was allocated $4 million in the 2014 national budget, much lower than the $50 million it requires to recapitalise, an official said on Tuesday.

The bank was set up as the government’s primary vehicle for channelling financial resources to the agricultural sector, but the State had failed to provide the funds.

“The bank is undercapitalised and requires urgent recapitalisation,” Agribank chief executive officer Sam Malaba told the Parliamentary Committee on Agriculture on Tuesday.

“We submitted a request of $50 million to the government and as of now there is only $4 million that was allocated to the bank.”

Malaba said the bank needed to raise its capital levels to $150 million from both the government and private sources to boost its balance sheet and attract lenders.

Two years ago, he said, government had agreed to privatise the bank and to cede a 49% stake to strategic partners, but the matter was still pending after a due diligence was conducted last year.

— The Source