15 Mar 2020

Citizen Entrepreneurial Development Agency (CEDA) charges its clients highly subsidised rates at five per cent and 7.5 per cent depending on the size of the loan.

 Assistant minister of Investment, Trade and Industry Mr Karabo Gare said this in Parliament, when responding to a question from the Member of Parliament for Ghanzi North, Mr John Thiite.

Mr Gare said the rates were currently lower than those offered by commercial banks and further explained that the agency was offering its services for free and ‘does not charge application fees as well as recurring items such as producing statements, letters of financial support and appeals to clients.’

The agency also offer free business advisory services to its clients in the form of training and mentoring services, which are not offered by commercial banks, he said.

The assistant minister stated that CEDA was established to provide financial and technical support for business development with a view to promote viable and sustainable citizen-owned enterprises.

Mr Gare pointed out that CEDA was also reviewing its operating guidelines to support growth of the competitive SME sector, adding that the review would recommend changes to the loan tenure, interest rates, and grace period and suggest penalties where beneficiaries were deemed to have abused the favorable lending terms provided by CEDA.

MP Thiite had wanted the assistant minister to state if CEDA still maintained its mandate of keeping its interests rates lower than that of commercial banks, since its establishment goal was to provide financial and technical support for business development, with a view to promote viable and sustainable citizen owned business enterprises, thereby creating wealth and employment. Ends