National Bank of Malawi plc Head of Retail Banking Division division Oswin Kasunda has advised small and medium enterprises (SMEs) to invest in perfecting their business proposals if they are to easily access business loans.

Speaking on the sidelines of a women entrepreneurs workshop in Blantyre, he said the perspective of the Malawi stock exchange (MSE) listed bank is that a viable business proposal is a winning formula when considering whether to give loans to the client or not.

‘’From the perspective of the banks, providing credit is not necessarily about collateral that customers must provide, but what is more important is the viable business proposal because when we are providing finance, we would want that money back and obviously we are comfortable with proposals that businesses give to the banks’’ said Kasunda.

He said they want women entrepreneurs to be knowledgeable about the banks products and get tips on how to better manage their businesses.

Speaking at the event, Reunion Insurance Chief Executive Officer, Dorothy Chapeyama advised women entrepreneurs to stay focused when pursuing their businesses. She said access to capital, competition and regulation are some of the challenges to their doing business in the country.

One of the entrepreneurs Florence Kawerama commended the banks initiative, saying it has helped them to advance their knowledge of banks products and services as well as the advantage of engaging the bank in their business undertakings.