Some beneficiaries of loans granted by the Macro Finance and Small Loans Centre (MASLOC) in the Subin Constituency, are defaulting in the payment of their loans, delaying the granting of loans to new applicants. Defaulters are in three months (March, April and May) arrears of the repayment plan, the Financial Extension Assistant in charge of Subin Constituency, Mr. Akwasi Adu Asamoah has disclosed. He said the default could have saved GHc200,000 and enable other applicants to benefit from the facility, and added that demand notices had been circulated so that repayment is made on schedule. About 1,374 applications from groups and individuals, are being processed for payment in the Ashanti Region, but Adu Asamoah indicated that default in repayments would delay the processing of new applicants, and stressed the need for beneficiaries to repay their loans on time to enable the Secretariat consider other applications. According to him, about 60 groups were benefiting from the facility in the Subin constituency. A total of GHc4,395,900 was said to have been disbursed in the Ashanti Region to 6,167 individuals as at May 6 this year. Since July 2007 when it started operations in the region, the loan scheme, which was meant to reduce poverty and bring financial services closer to the doorsteps of the rural communities, has disbursed monies to two categories of beneficiaries. These are the micro credit, which involves organized groups of applicants, under the cooperative system and small loans for individuals. A total of 776 individuals, comprising 403 males and 363 females, have benefited from the facility over the 10-month period. Under small loans for individuals, a total of GHc2,098,000 had been paid to the 776 beneficiaries, in this category, Under the micro credit category, which deals with 447 groups comprising 7,891 individuals of 2,956 males and 4,935 females, an amount of GHc2,297,900 had been disbursed, bringing the total of funds disbursed in the Ashanti Region to GHc4,395,900. Credit: The Chronicle