A high profile team from the Saherian Bank for Investment and Commerce yesterday paid courtesy call at The Point Newspaper to make the acquaintance of and to establish a good relationship with the staff there.

According to Dodou Bammy Jagne, Deputy General Manager of the Bank, the two establishments were neighbours and there is need to create a good neighbourly friendship.

Talking about their contribution to national development, Mr Jagne said, “The BSCI Bank is for the development of the whole community, called ‘SENSAD’. It’s a geopolitical space that comprises 26 countries in Africa including Arab Africa.

Southern Africa is excluded and Gambia is the first Anglophone country to take up membership.”

The idea, he said, was to create a regional Bank that is unique and would serve its people, by developing their socio-economic potential with an emphasis on poverty reduction. “The Bank is unique because it’s chartered to do everything conventional Banks can do, ranging from development and financing, a unique domain on their own – A service not provided by Commercial Banks.”

They said they intend to open branches in Banjul, Serrekunda, and Senegambia with more branches to come subsequently.

Mr Pap Saine, the Managing Editor of The Point Newspaper expressed his delight and said he felt very honoured to receive the delegation of the officials of the Sahel Bank. He assured them of open doors for a close cooperation. “We need each other, as Mr Jagne said we are neighbours so we are a family,” he said. “In a nutshell we are ready to render any assistance or promotion. It is an African Bank, so you can rest assured of our close cooperation,” he said. The delegation included Mr Mohamed Khaled Shalbek, General Manager of the Bank, Ms Niania Dabo Head of Retail Banking and the Deputy General Manager Mr Dodou Bammy Jagne.