Informal sector businesses and other productive poor individuals who inculcate the habit of savings can access diverse credit facilities to improve their business and personal needs. This is according to officials of ezi Savings and Loans Limited, a fast growing non-bank financial institution in Ghana. The company has adopted the susu scheme as a viable microfinance platform to achieve accelerated growth in deposit mobilization from the unbanked population. Head of Branches and Marketing, Francisca Kreku says the susu savings also provides an opportunity for micro and small scale entrepreneurs to gradually build up capital. She says a sizeable proportion of eligible customers have gained access to credit facilities and offered free capacity building opportunities in business advisory and management skills. “We have different types of loans to meet their business and personal needs. For that reason a susu customer can take up to Gh¢20,000.00 or more depending on the category of the susu that he or she is doing… so you give them loans according to their ability to pay”, Ms. Kreku told Luv FM at the Kumasi draw of the ezi Bronya susu promotions. The company’s susu customer base has grown to a total of 31,000 within two years with total deposits amounting to Gh¢2.8 million. Ms. Kreku attributed this partly to the deployment of Mbank or mobile banking technology in deposit mobilization. ezi Savings and Loans plans to increase its branches from ten to 16 this year, whilst expanding the susu mobilization horizon through a partnership deal with some strategic foreign investors. Story by Kofi Adu Domfeh/Luv Fm/Ghana