Senin, 17 Agustus 2009


Banua Bank: Looking For Space to Establish Microfinance Institution

Abdul Rozak Tanjung
Founder and Member of the Siala Sampagul Agricultural Group

Community Based Microfinance Institution

It has been generally known that community based microfinance plays magnificent roles on bringing help the community economical lives. There have been obliviously stories on the microfinance institutions successful all over the world. One of the most known institutions is Grameen Bank in Bangladesh where its founder, Muhammad Yunus, has been awarded a prestigious award so called Peace Nobel Prize in Oslo of Norway in 2006. His efforts and meaningful works delay the possibility of Indonesian President, Susilo Bambang Yudoyono, and former prime minister of Finland Marty Athisari to hold such a prestigious award in the year of 2006.

Award is not only a piece of medal and some cash but the most important thing also the public recognition on his commitment and voluntary actions to bring help the villagers or even plenty of beggars economical lives. There was pessimistic the smooth running of Yunus’ concepts in the very beginning since the country was on independence fighting as well as on the worst economical lives throughout the country. However, Muhammad Yunus was a smart professor and had a fighting spirit to empower his own country community through microfinance institution. We must confess our deeply hearth salutation to your fruitful result to him. Congratulation Mr. Professor!
Banua Bank : A Dream of My Group

I must confess that I don’t have capacity as Yunus had it in the year of 1974. However, I have a fighting spirit to ensure the availability of microfinance institutions within several villages in my homeland in Mandailing of North Sumatra, Indonesia. I learnt a bit from his successful story and read some books written by him. Tracing back to the first step of his action, I see the space to conduct the same things at least within the ten villages in my homeland. The seeds of the institution have been nurturing through the Siala Sampagul Agriculture Group in my home village. They have been practicing microfinance process since the year of 2007 in which they can save their own money and ask loans for productive capitals. Up to now, every single member holds a saving-loans book which is closely the same to bank book. Establishing a stronger microfinance institution such a small bank has been their dream since the very beginning.

Tracing back again to the fruitful result of Yunus, there is space to conduct the same things in ten villages in Tarlola Sibanggor region where its community closely the same to the Bangladesh community in term of its cultural, livelihoods and religious life. I assumed that BANUA BANK is the most appropriate name which is the local translation of Village Bank.

The “on dream bank” will be situated in the traditional market compound in Kampung Lamo Village where the place is the melting pot of local traders and business man to do selling-buying transaction and one of educational sites within the region. Since the traditional market is just opened weekly, it is possible to the bank management opening saving and loans transaction without totally denying their main works as farmers.

How Do We Should Start?

As I said early, the Siala Sampagul is just a small group made up of less than 40 members. It is a requirement to enlarge the group members or establishing more groups in neighboring villages. It is also needed to look for voluntary facilitators to start it in their own villages. The groups will be organized under one umbrella or an association where each group placing their own representative to the association. The association will formulate a strong and acceptable regulation by which they could run saving and loans transaction, reporting and evaluation properly.

Another thing to be ensured is the needs of collaterals for the outsider or for those who isn’t registered to the group yet. For the group members will not be implemented collaterals since they are group members and having social collaterals since they registered to village groups. A regular monitoring and evaluation must be conducted on all sectors in the Bank and its environments. Should we start it now?. I am looking for volunteers to achieve the villagers dream.