ABHA, 12 March 2004 — Loans from the Agricultural Bank in Abha and its branches in Bisha, Al-Namas over the year have reached SR43.6 million. Of this, around SR9 million was given to farmers to support production projects, including chicken farms, cold stores and fishing boats. Furthermore, he said there were 233 standard loans with a total cost of SR34 million. Meanwhile, in the Eastern Province, the bank has released more than SR83.4 million. Abdulaziz Al-Owaifer, the bank president, stated that loans exceeded SR62.2 million while other financial assistance totaled more than SR21.1 million.