CHIRUNDU ZANACO'S 56TH BRANCH OFFICIALLY OPENED

(First Published 13th February 2009)

There was excitement in the border town of Chirundu as the doors of our 56th outlet were officially opened amid jubilation from the residents of Chirundu and surrounding areas of such as Chipepo and Lusitu. The branch housed in the recently built Chirundu Border Post complex was a hive of activity as the audience in attendance were entertained b to the famous local dance of the area called Udime. The dance performed by the Udime cultural group saw the audience including some members of staff joining in the dance. Officiating at the ceremony was Honorable Felix Mutati, Minister of Commerce, Trade and Industry. Other guests were included Chief Chipepo, Zanaco board member Mrs Ehuene and Zanaco senior members of staff.

Speaking at the event, Mutati said he was happy that Zanaco had reaffirmed its commitment as the "people's bank" by opening the Chirundu branch amid fears from the people that operations of the bank would come to a halt once taken over by the Rabo Bank group. He also praised the bank for having performed exceptionally well in 2008. He said it was evident that the bank had delivered beyond the expectations of its customers and shareholders judging from the performance of profit growth. Mutati likened the opening of the branch in Chirundu to economic stimulus. He explained that economic stimulus means providing an enabling environment for people to progress economically. He said economic stimulus is key in the economic growth of Zambia. He further added that government had provided over K2.3 trillion as an economic stimulus package for Zambia in this year's budget with a view of tackling the global credit crunch.

Earlier, Zanaco MD, Mark Wiessing said the Chirundu branch was set up in line with Zanaco's vision of providing broad based retail and commercial banking services to customers through out Zanaco’s network around the country including the rural areas. He further said that these aspirations have been a driving force in the imporvemnet of business activities of the bank as evidenced by the numerous initiatives implemented. He cited the conversion of all ATM cards to Visa Electron, opening of Senanga Branch, expansion of our ATM network from 35 to 62 machines (expected to grow to over 100 within the next few months) and launch of the advanced internet banking module for our corporate customers as some of the many Zanaco milestones in the recent past.

Mr. Wiessing further explained that Chirundu Branch was set up because Zanaco believes in the business opportunities in the area being one of the busiest border towns in Zambia. "I am also pleased to announce that the opening of our branch here in Chirundu will also signal a departure from banking business as usual. As we position ourselves to be the leading corporate citizen, the Chirundu community will be able to reap the benefits of our Financial Fitness Programme, an initiative under our Corporate Social Responsibility plan which will be offered throughout our entire branch network. The CSR programme will be focusing on financial literacy for children, adults and SMEs" he added.

Mr. Wiessing also revealed that Zanaco had performed extremely well in the year ended 2008 with close to 100% growth in the bank's profit before tax, a PAT of K50 billion, the largest deposit base of all banks in Zambia at K2.3 trillion, and shareholders equity of K250 billion, the second highest of all banks in Zambia and significantly above the minimum requirements of BOZ.

Delivering a vote of thanks on behalf of Chirundu residents, District Commissioner, Emily Striedl thanked Zanaco for bringing banking services closer to the people of Chirundu and surrounding areas. She said the wait for the bank was long overdue and that she was confident the services of the bank would enrich the lives of Chirundu residents.