Evaluating the competitiveness of Cairo International Bank (CIB) Uganda Limited

Abstract

The study evaluates the competitiveness of Cairo International Bank Uganda Ltd. The study specifically established the current state of competitiveness of Cairo International Bank (CIB)-Uganda, factors for the low competiveness and strategic framework that can be adopted to improve the competitiveness.

The study used cross sectional design with quantitative and qualitative approaches. The study population was involved. Data was collected from branch managers, supervisors, banking officers and administrative staff members. Data was collected using a questionnaire and an interview guide. Data was analyzed to obtain frequencies, percentages and means.

In the study it was revealed that in recent past the bank has not been able to effectively compete in the market, CIB in the last five years has not been making high profits and the bank did not rank highest in product innovation within the banking industry in previous years. It was also found out that some of the factors that are limiting the competitiveness of the bank is too much freedom of entry and exit by many players, various regulatory policies affected fair competition, many restrictions on opening other branches that would enable CIB Ltd to be more competitive in the market, political interference in the bank operations, misconceptions, perceptions on the founders of the bank and low quality of staff also affected its competitiveness.

In regard to strategies that can be used to improve the competitiveness of the bank, it was revealed that the bank needs to promote remote banking models, the bank should promote transactions through non bank retail outlets and the the bank should use CRB in information sharing on borrower. It therefore concluded that the competitiveness of the bank is still low, many factors are responsible for low competiveness of the bank and a number of models/strategies can be used to improve competitiveness of the bank. It was therefore recommended that the bank should hire competent people, re-examine factors that limit its competitiveness and adopt effective marketing strategy.