Centenary Rural Development Bank, Uganda: A Flagship of Rural Bank Reform in Africa

This document presents a case study of Centenary Rural Development Bank in Uganda. It states that:

• Centenary Rural Development Bank is a commercial bank in Uganda that provides deposit, credit and money transfer services indiscriminately to men and women of lower income;
• By insisting on loan recovery and cost coverage, the bank has reached more customers in rural areas than any other institution in Uganda.

This paper also discusses:

• The feasibility and impact of rural and agricultural bank reform;
• The compatibility of institutional sustainability and outreach to both men and women in rural areas;
• The feasibility of agricultural lending to men and women.

It concludes by outlining the major challenges and opportunities for Centenary Bank. These include:

• Bringing microfinance to the poor;
• Providing opportunities for graduation to "mesofinance";
• Lending wholesale to NGOs, MFIs and associations of farmers and microentrepreneurs, and graduating clients of NGOs and SHGs;
• Offering tied savings-cum-credit products and cross-selling of financial products;
• Strengthening the delivery capacity of the bank;
• Disseminating sustainable rural finance, agricultural lending and agricultural bank reform.