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Michael Magoronga, Midlands Correspondent
NEWLY established Empower Bank is set to open more branches across the country to reach out to more marginalised youths who require loans for various projects.

Government through the Ministry of Youth, Indigenisation and Economic Development, launched the micro-finance institution in July with the aim of empowering youths who need capital for various projects. Capitalised to the tune of $2, 5 million and targeting more than 40 000 youths, the bank has a single branch in the capital, Harare.

Speaking during a Young Miners Forum in Kwekwe, Empower Bank Harare branch manager, Ms Ebony Chipfumbu, said the bank would soon open branches in other parts of the country.

“We will soon open branches in Bulawayo and Mutare before we move to other smaller mining towns. Our goal is to reach out to as many youths as we can,” said Ms Chipfumbu.

She urged youths to take advantage of the loan facility that the bank was offering saying they have relaxed collateral.

“Opening of more branches is to ensure that we reach out to many youths as we can. We are targeting those youths who would have been denied access to loans by other banks. In the same vein we also urge the youths to take full advantage of the bank that is why we are moving closer to the people,” she said.

Collateral, she said, had been relaxed to accommodate almost every youth.

“We accept both movable and immovable property for collateral. We also urge those who are yet to acquire any wealth to join associations who can now represent them making it easy for them to access the loans,” she said.

Speaking during the indaba, Young Miners Foundation (YMF) co-director Mr Payne Kupfuwa expressed concern over the location of the bank, which he said many youths, especially from mining towns, were failing to access.

“We request that the Empower Bank, if it needs to benefit everyone, it should be decentralised especially to mining towns like Kwekwe, Zvishavane, Shurugwi and Kadoma. There are many youths who are there who want to access the loans but are failing due to distance,” he said.

The bank was officially launched by President Emmerson Mnangagwa as a way of empowering marginalised youths who fail to get capital injection for their projects. The bank has 70 percent of the fund for youths while 30 percent was set aside for any other business people.