Non-Performing Loans and Debt Recovery Training Course

This five-day course builds the skills to manage non-performing loans from early warning through to resolution. It covers the classification and measurement of non-performing loans, restructuring and workout strategies, legal recovery and enforcement, provisioning and write off, and the institutional practices that keep asset quality under control. Participants leave able to manage a distressed loan through to the best available outcome for the institution.

Every loan book, however well underwritten, eventually produces loans that stop performing. What separates a resilient institution from a fragile one is not the absence of non-performing loans but the speed and skill with which they are identified, managed and resolved. Left too long, a manageable problem loan becomes a write off, a portfolio of neglected problem loans becomes a capital problem, and a capital problem becomes an existential one.

This course builds the discipline of managing that process well, grounded in the realities of distressed lending, restructuring and recovery across African markets, including the practical and legal constraints recovery often runs into. It covers the classification and measurement of nonperforming loans, restructuring and workout strategies, legal recovery and enforcement, provisioning and write off, and the institutional habits, from early warning systems to reporting, that keep asset quality visible and under control. Participants leave able to manage a distressed loan from the first warning sign through to the best available resolution.

• Explain how non-performing loans are classified and measured
• Analyse the early warning signs that a loan is moving towards distress
• Distinguish between restructuring, workout and enforcement as recovery paths
• Design a restructuring proposal appropriate to a borrower's situation
• Apply provisioning and write off practice to distressed exposures
• Evaluate the legal and practical routes available for recovery
• Assess the trade-offs between recovery value, cost and time
• Manage a distressed loan portfolio to reduce concentration and loss
• Strengthen institutional practices for early identification and reporting

This course is suitable for:

• Recovery and remedial management staff
• Credit risk and portfolio management staff
• Relationship managers handling distressed accounts
• Legal and recoveries counsel
• Internal auditors reviewing asset quality
• Central bank and supervisory staff assessing asset quality
• Microfinance and SME lending recovery staff
• Bank executives overseeing asset quality

The course uses a case and workout based methodology, working through real distressed loan scenarios and restructuring decisions from diagnosis to resolution.

• Expert led sessions and facilitated discussion
• Distressed loan case studies and workout simulations
• Restructuring and provisioning calculation exercises
• Recovery and enforcement scenario work
• A daily practical session building towards a full workout plan

Organisations whose teams complete this course can expect:

• Earlier identification of distressed exposures
• Higher recovery values and lower ultimate losses
• More consistent classification and provisioning practice
• Stronger asset quality reporting to boards and regulators
• Reduced concentration of risk in the nonperforming book
• Better informed decisions between restructuring and enforcement
• Improved relationships with borrowers navigating genuine hardship
• Stronger capital position through disciplined provisioning
• A more resilient institution better able to absorb credit shocks

Participants completing this course will gain:

• The ability to recognise distress early and act on it
• Stronger skills in structuring workable restructuring proposals
• Greater confidence navigating recovery and enforcement options
• Sharper judgement on when to restructure, workout or enforce
• A valued specialism in distressed asset management
• Increased credibility in recovery and provisioning discussions
• A practical toolkit of classification, provisioning and workout tools
• Reduced personal exposure to preventable credit losses
• A stronger platform for senior credit or recovery roles

At Strategic Revenue Africa, our certification goes beyond proof of attendance—it represents practical competence and measurable capability. Upon successful completion of our training programs, participants are awarded a Certificate of Completion from Strategic Revenue Africa, recognizing their ability to apply acquired knowledge in real-world settings. As an organization focused on architecting sustainable revenue and strengthening organizational performance, our certifications signal that participants are equipped with skills that drive results, not just theory.

A basic understanding of credit and lending is assumed. The course suits credit, risk, recovery and legal staff involved in managing distressed loans. Comfort with basic numeracy is required, and the Credit Risk Management and Lending course is a useful precursor.