Bank of Zambia Director of Non-Bank Financial Supervision Gladys Mposha has called on Zambians to embrace the spirit of saving money in banks.
Ms. Mposha said the growth of any economy requires that savings from various sources be channeled into financial assets.
She said this in Lusaka yesterday when she officiated at the launch of the “Open, Save and Win” competition of the Zambia National Building Society (ZNBS).
Ms. Mposha said the distinction between the rich and the poor countries of the world can be evidenced in the levels of savings that could be mobilized and channeled into productive sectors.
She said the financial sector has for many centuries been particularly good at performing the intermediate role of encouraging people to save.
Ms. Mposha however noted that there was no doubt that the country was facing immense challenges, one of which was the critical shortage of housing due to low financing in the sector.
She said as a building society, ZNBS plays a critical role in the economy of the country partly through the provision of mortgage accounts.
Ms. Mposha further said this role can only be achieved if there were enhanced savings mobilization efforts such as competitions.
She observed that the demand for housing finance has increased as evidenced by the many housing developments taking place in various parts of the country.
And ZNBS Managing Director Joseph Chikolwa said the competition was aimed at encouraging members of the public to save with their bank.
Mr. Chikolwa said the main objective of establishing ZNBS in 1970 was to provide housing finance with the aim of increasing housing stock in the country.
He said currently, ZNBS was the largest building society with over 64 percent market share of the building societies mortgage in Zambia.
Meanwhile, Zambia Tourism Board Managing Director Felix Chaila commended ZNBS for its contribution in the promotion of domestic tourism.
In a speech read for him by his Public Relations Manager Caristo Chitamfya, Mr. Chaila challenged Zambians to examine their knowledge of Zambia and its tourism products.
It will be better if Ms. Mposha make call on the banks to offer decent interest on savings.
As it stands, with official rate of inflation almost double of deposit interest rate, what is the point in keeping money in the Bank?
Financing ever increasing Government borrowing which leads to devaluation of Kwacha in real terms?
Spot on, 142. There is no need to keep your money in the bank. The bank charges are by far always higher than the interest rates
Put money in the bank and empower the gang… sorry banksters to ruin us??
No way!
Most people have no idea of the power-play that is going on. The next financial crash will not leave Zambia untouched (in other words, if China goes down, so do we). Only chance is to diversify our economy away from dependency on metal export. Sadly none of our (mis)leaders do not have the foresight. Cleaver boys and girls are investing in land and property.
Anyway, who is listening to what I am saying? Better go back to my kantemba and hope it will bring me my next meal.
@Mulenga and Jelita
You are spot on. This a ploy by the government to grab people’s money like what happened in Malt when the government was broke.
I don’t trust PF’ schemes at all. Beside what money is there to save when prices are going up uncontrollably.
there is no point in keeping money in a bank in zambia.BOZ efforts will be better spent telling the banks to reduce the lending rates.these banks campaigned very hard to have their corporate tax reduced promising to reduce the lending rates in return.after the tax was reduced the banks never honoured their side of the bargain,BOZ has been very quiet about this despite being very well informed and now some overpaid character comes and starts preaching about saving money in banks.such a shame
but some of these ‘alien’ banks hold onto to your loan application for months asking for this and that and when you supply all they ask for they change goal posts and decline to approve your loan without any realistic answer but that ‘your application does not meet or selective lending criteria’.
While other nations are progressive and innovative with high banking penetration of mobile banking like Kenya,the Philippines and Bangladesh we zambians are still in stoneage banking with very little banking penetration.
It is true sometimes one is discouraged by the interest rate while the charges are too high. So we resort to not keeping the whole amount in the Bank which they use for lending at a very high rate of 20%. The owner of that money gets nothing , in fact he loses more through the Bank charges.
Peace and Prosperity to Mother Zambia.
it dies not make sense to keep money in zambia, for instance if you 1000 for a year in a bank but the end of it will will get less than half, the other week i had some 400 in a certain bank, then i deposited a cheque of 1300, after a week i was told i can only get 1200, my friend had kept 15700 in a deposit fixed account after 60 days the interest was only 7 kwacha. so it does not pay to keep money in the bank in zambia.
Why only Zambians when Indians,Somalis,Pakistanis,Rwandans,Congolese etc hide Millions under beds or in boxes?
This is a “stone age” innovation . Elsewhere people in villages are transacting on their cell phones and these guys are looking for cash from people to go pay their salaries. You get better rates if you are running a KALOBA business!!
Urge the Mwenyes especially…
They keep a lot of moneys in their houses.
This pushes up inflation since they remove a lot of moneys in circulation…
When they have accumulated a lot,
and I mean A LOT,
they send the Moneys to their POOR relatives in India or Sri Lanka or Pakistan or any other such nations through dubious underground means at the expenses of Zambians…
and they convince our corrupt courts of law and other law enforcers that there is nothing wrong to steal money in such a manner…
What a Shame and our Leaders are just warming up their seats…
At the end these Mwenyes will buy Zambia…
why can’t we invite South Africans to invest in our Country!
to me South Africans investments are tangible
Banks need to make their offer more competitive. Currently they behave as if they are doing you a favour by holding your money and profiting from your money, slap you with ridiculous charges for e.g. the “privilege” of having a bank account, the “privilege” of using an ATM to get your own money, etc. In other countries banks compete for customers by offering real benefits
In other Countries Central Banks monitor and approve/disapprove “usury” charges for many and “privileged” “nominal fees” for few which is normal practice by our “International Bankers”.
I keep ma mulla safe at home using Mr. Liato’s formula. Its safe and sound. I just keep liTtle of it in the bank in case I wish to go for business and withdraw it at the border. Bankers make profit out of my sweat:
I savour, cause I discovered just what I used to be taking a look for.
You have ended my four day lengthy hunt!
God Bless you man. Have a nice day. Bye
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