Bank Windhoek has disbursed N$50 million since March 2023 to support the Namibian government’s Small-Medium Enterprise (SME) Economic Recovery Loan Scheme, which was launched in February.
The scheme is aimed at stimulating economic growth and job creation by providing additional funding to SME businesses.
Leon Koch, Executive Officer of Business Banking at Bank Windhoek, said that the bank supports the development of SMEs because they play a crucial role in the Namibian economy.
“As a connector of positive change, we support the development of SMEs because they play a crucial role in the Namibian economy through value creation in various sectors and also assisting in reducing unemployment,” he said.
The SME Economic Recovery Loan Scheme is a partnership between the Namibian government and several local banking institutions, including Bank Windhoek and the Bank of Namibia.
Koch explained that through the scheme, Bank Windhoek would extend loans to qualifying SMEs at the Prime Lending Rate of less than 0.5%.
“As part of the loan conditions, the obligation to pay the interest and capital on the loan will be deferred for six months from the day of signing the agreement,” Koch said.
He added that the critical qualifying criteria for Bank Windhoek are that the SME customer should have an existing relationship with the bank through lending or transactional banking.
“They should also be a registered business entity with the Business and Intellectual Property Authority (BIPA), including a sole proprietorship. The customers should also have a maximum annual turnover not exceeding sixty million Namibia dollars per annum,” Koch explained.
He also noted that to qualify for assistance, the applicant should not have previously participated or have any existing SME Economic Recovery Loan with Bank Windhoek or any other financial institution.
The economic slowdown experienced since 2016 has severely impacted businesses and SMEs specifically.
