By Mbatjiua Ngavirue WINDHOEK Last Friday saw the launch of Banking Week 2007 – an initiative aimed at educating and informing the Namibian public about the importance of the banking industry in Namibia. Banking Week 2007, which starts today and runs until February 2, is a joint initiative of the Bank of Namibia (BoN) and the Bankers Association of Namibia (BAN). The educational activities of Banking Week 2007 will include a road show, which will be travelling to several of the major towns in the country. The road show will kick off in Windhoek and Okahandja today before moving to Grootfontein on Tuesday, Tsumeb and Ondangwa on Wednesday, and Oshakati on Thursday. Secondary school learners will also be able to participate in a creative competition by entering a poem, essay, drawing or a painting with the theme “Banking made easy”. Officially launching Banking Week 2007, Finance Minister Saara Kuugongelwa-Amadhila commended the BoN and BAN initiative to educate members of the public about personal finances. She was particularly concerned that in rural areas public savings lag way behind what she considers desirable levels. “Villagers often exchange their pay cheques at local shops, and then have the full wage cash in hand to spend, which of course is detrimental to keeping a lid on people’s expenditure,” she noted. The Banking Week initiative is aimed first and foremost for the benefit of the many Namibians who do not take advantage of any financial services. At the same time however, she said, it must also target those who already have bank accounts but feel ill-informed about the opportunities and costs of those services. Kuugongelwa-Amadhila said there is a need to improve education on customer rights in the financial sector, as many people are completely unaware of what they are legally entitled to in terms of service and information. Customers, she felt, not only needed to be able to compare charges across banks, but they must also be informed about differences in service conditions. “On the side of the institutions, transparency needs to be improved. Commercial banks and other financial service providers have largely failed to make comprehensive information on their fees and charges available,” she remarked. The lack of information made it difficult for customers to compare different offers and make the best choices for themselves. “Many indeed do not know the amount of money their bank charges them, and some institutions are reluctant to disclose such vital information even on request,” she added. Speaking at the launch BoN Governor Tom Alweendo said he was confident the Banking Week initiative would have a positive impact on the stability of the financial sector. He further announced that Banking Week would be an annual event where organisers will plan and carry out countrywide educational and awareness activities. President of the Banker’s Association Leonard Haynes said that as an important industry in growing Namibia’s economy the banking industry stands firmly behind the developmental goals of government. He said he wanted to reiterate that there is no collusion between or amongst commercial banks in Namibia.