The Central Bank of Lesotho is establishing a credit bureau.
The year 2004 is devoted to a massive public education
campaign to clear off any negative perceptions about the
service....
Credit Bureau
The arrangements for the establishment of a credit bureau
continued in 2003. It is generally agreed that it is in the
best economic interest of Lesotho that a credit bureau be
established in Lesotho. However, given the recent banking
history in Lesotho, many individuals and companies who
borrowed heavily from state-owned banks are likely to oppose
the idea of setting up a credit bureau in Lesotho. They may
see the project as a witch-hunt or an attempt to possibly
expose their recent credit histories. Therefore, care must
be taken to ensure that the public understands what the
bureau is all about and buys into the project. In
recognition of this concern, the prospective users of the
credit bureau information agreed to jointly mount a public
education campaign. Tenders for the campaign were invited
from consultants in the country. The response was good and
the selection process was finalised in 2004. It is hoped
that the education campaign will start soon thereafter.
The objective of the public campaign is to clear off any
negative perceptions that the public might have about the
credit bureau and to inform the public about:
- The benefits
of having a credit bureau;
- The duties
and obligations of a credit bureau company;
- The rights
of the public in respect of a credit bureau company
In light of the
above and in order to ensure the success of the project, the
stakeholders agreed that it would be best if a professional
public relations company carried out such a campaign. The
stakeholders further agreed in principle to equally share
the costs of the campaign estimated in the range of M50 000
and M100 000. Terms of Reference for the campaign and
modalities for the procurement of the services of a public
relations company were also agreed upon.
Pursuant to a decision to procure services of a professional
public relations company, the stakeholders held another
meeting to consider tenders for the campaign. Amongst the
five bids submitted for consideration, the tender was
awarded to Gemini Professional Services.
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