National Bank for Agriculture and Rural Development: A Role Model for Commercial Banks in India
This paper presents an overview of the mandate, mission, objectives, functions and performance of National Bank for Agriculture and Rural Development (NABARD) in India.
The Government of India set up NABARD as a development bank with a mandate for providing and regulating credit and other facilities for integrated rural development and the promotion and development of agriculture. Its services include credit support, related services, institution development and other innovative initiatives. NABARD provides effective credit support to eligible institutions, helps establish MFIs and focuses on development and supervisory functions for cooperative banks and Regional Rural Banks. NABARD, as an apex development bank, has been playing a crucial role to improve the livelihood of India’s rural poor. It has:
- Acted as an innovative institution for rural growth and progress;
- Assumed the role of a social entrepreneurial organization;
- Continuously developed innovative projects to enhance its social outreach;
- Developed the self-help group – bank linkage program to provide financial services to the poor in a sustainable manner;
- Acted as a bridge between the informal and formalized institutional banking.
