Community Banking

New table banking groups must register with the Ministry of Gender, Children and Social Development as self-help groups or community-based organizations to qualify for training.

They are trained in the management of their own funds and funds loaned to them from external sources, in a table setting, hence the name “Table Banking”. Group members have access to funds without having to worry about the strict loaning requirements imposed by most commercial banks, especially the requirement that they put up collateral for the loan.

Members contribute money as savings and can borrow immediately. They are entitled to borrowing based on the amount of shares they save. All this is done openly on the table, and the revolving money is not saved in a commercial bank but goes with members who are expected to repay with a 10% interest within a month.

The 10% interest is shared as follows: 7% goes to the group as dividends, 2% becomes the borrower’s additional shares and 1% is set aside for training and record keeping. Due to the duration of repayment, the loan is called “a short term loan”.

Unlike most microcredit institutions or commercial banks, this program distinctively underlines a ‘win-win’ character in its service delivery—that is, the program benefits all parties, not just microcredit institutions and banks.

SIT works with the poorest segment of the society; the vulnerable and the marginalized who often exhibit a considerable degree of illiteracy. This challenge requires the organization to educate its clients so that they apply the concept of Table Banking properly. Education ensures that the critical economic empowerment objective is progressively achieved. But statistics still show that the level of education of a clear majority of members of these groups remains comparatively low in relation to others in the society. This is because most of the groups’ members are women who as girls weren’t encouraged to stay in education and dropped out of school. A lack of any prospects and a social pressure to produce children combine to leave women at a disadvantage. This is the reason why SIT continues to target women and girls as its primary beneficiaries with a view to changing this indeed discouraging trend.