The SLCB has on Wednesday unleashed the MI YONE SLCB TELLER/ KIOSK products in the Adonkia community.

This according to the Managing Director Mr. Idrissa Alooma Kamara came as a result of the limited access to former banking services faced by Sierra Leoneans surmounted with the financial exclusion rate of 80% which the bank considered unacceptable for the development of the banking sector.

He maintained that the bank in the coupled of months, has embarked on an ambitious infrastructural revolution to transform the bank into a digital enterprise by 2020 serving as crisis over comer with the intention to extending its niche across the country. He sighted out that with the new model intervention of the SLCB, customers will not only be assured of low cost but will now have access to open their bank account and business, salary processing, cash withdrawal and deposit in access communities.

Speaking on the challenges of financial services across the country, the Bank Governor,Dr. Patrick Conteh pointed out that the geographical dimension of financial services within the country rating a total of eighty six out of one hundred and ninety one chiefdoms, do have financial service access point bringing out that large proportion of such excluded the population of the country. The governor further affirmed that the challenges in line with the low penetration rate of financial services in deprived communities across the country, presents opportunity for financial institutions like the SLCB to leverage a cooperate technology and expand financial access delivery in other to meet the growing demands of the new generation also to enhancing the operations and efficient of the banking institutions especially in the rural areas where branches are available.

Addressing other banks during the ceremony, the governor encouraged them to take up the opportunity to map out potential financial access points for the creation of far reaching financial inclusion footprint in Sierra Leone. On the part of the central bank, Dr. Patrick Conteh assured of giving support for the effort rendered by SLCB in its quest to digital means to create financial access across the country. He further committed to creating the enabling regulatory and supervisory environment to support effort in developing the digital financial service landscape as part of their objective. To compliment the effort of the government, he outlined that the central bank strongly support the government’s effort for sustainable and improve economic growth to alleviate poverty across the country.

Addressing on the current intervention of the bank of Sierra Leone, he mentioned that the central bank is reviewing all ACTS in the banking sector including the BSL and other commercial banks to enhance potential regulatory barriers. “I want to challenge all MDS here today to target two hundred and fifty thousand customers/ clients each year with the current equation rate of fifteen banks until 2025 to roll out these products” he clarifies and also advanced that if ten commercial banks can champion this, it will yield to overcoming 2.5 million customers a year that which will translate the inclusion rate.

Speaking on behalf of the Adonkia Community, Mr. Jeffery L. Kargbo appreciated the management of SLCB for thunderous consideration to providing them the new service in their community which he later assured the management and the public to taking great ownership of the KIOSK placed in their community.