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From today, Australians are being urged to donate at any National branch to support the New South Wales Community Disaster Relief Fund. "Bushfires and drought are both having a severe impact on New South Wales, particularly in rural communities," said Mr Mike Carroll, General Manager Agribusiness, National Australia Bank. "We are glad to make our facilities available to provide practical assistance. "Customers may donate at any of our 800 National Australia Bank branches across Australia and we urge all Australians to donate to the NSW Community Disaster Relief Fund, which is administered by the NSW Department of Community Services." "Almost all of NSW has now been declared in drought, highlighting the importance of the work the National is doing to assist affected customers. With around 150 years experience in providing finance to Australian agriculture, we take a long-term view of our relationships in the sector. We have encouraged farming customers to talk to us about the impact of drought on them so that we can, on a one-on-one basis, consider assistance measures that may be offered. "We have encouraged our farming customers to talk to us about the ramifications of the drought on their cash flows so that we can work with them to ensure they have adequate financial resources to carry them through until the next harvest. "The support we are providing includes reducing or deferring loan repayments and providing carry-on finance to cover cashflow shortages. "The National has also set aside in excess of $1million to fund additional resources in its Agribusiness team over the coming months. This is to ensure we are able to respond to clients' needs quickly and flexibly at this time when many farmers are in need of more individual attention than usual."
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