Nigeria has made progress in strengthening regulations to enhance financial inclusion especially in the agriculture sector.
One of these financial inclusion is the Anchor Borrowers Program (ABP) which was launched by President Muhammadu Buhari on November 17, 2015 to create a linkage between anchor companies involved in the processing and small holder farmers of the required key agricultural commodities.
The programme being implemented across the country by the Central Bank of Nigeria (CBN), with support from the Bank of Agriculture (BOA) and the Ministry of Agriculture and Rural Development, has received high commendation from stakeholders in the agricultural sector, as it targets farmers directly while disturbing agricultural credit facilities.
Nigerian agriculture, especially rice production witnessed boost because farmers went back to farms upon hearing the benefits of the programme.
Challenges
Recently, farmers complained about some anomalies in the Program which they said may jeopardise the entire Program if necessary steps weren’t taken.
It would be recalled that the Chairman of the Senate Committee on Agriculture, Senator Abdullahi Adamu restated the need for the CBN to hand over the administration of the ABP and other agricultural programmes.
He said the agency of government that has the mandate for the promotion of agricultural production generally is domiciled in the Ministry of Agriculture while the Bank of Agriculture (BOA) should handle loans to farmers.
“BOA is supposed to be the agency through which financing of agricultural loans and other facilities to empower farmers of various categories to benefit and get necessary funding be domiciled.
While farmers in some states had complained about delay in payment of the ABP fund from the Central Bank of Nigeria (CBN), they also lamented that they were unable to harvest their crops due to lack of funding from the Anchor Borrowers Program.
In some areas, some farmers lamented that the seeds supplied to them for the planting season under the Program was fake.
When the ABP was launched in 2015, one of the aim was to increase yield per hectare in rice production, in order to meet up with the deficit in the nation’s annual rice production.
Meanwhile, the yield per hectare in some states exceeded five metric tons which in turn increased Nigeria’s annual rice production to over five million metric tons.
After observing some of the shortcomings of the Program, some stakeholders and farmers suggested that ABP should be domiciled in the Bank of Agriculture.
The stakeholders were of the opinion that the BOA is more closer to the farmers than the CBN, with majority of its offices are in the rural areas.
The Ministry of Agriculture and Rural Development which oversees the BOA has a more comprehensive list of farmers in Nigeria which may make easier for the BOA to reach them directly.
The stakeholders, however, said if the anomalies raised by the farmers were not addressed urgently, the aim of initiating the ABP may be defeated.
They however called on the appropriate authorities to recapitalise the BOA as it is better positioned to carry out agricultural programmes rather than letting CBN carry out the mandate.
Speaking on the challenges, a stakeholder in the agric sector, Magaji Abdullahi while noting that the scheme has been facing several challenges in states, noted that the biggest challenge was the delay in funds disbursement.
Abdullahi who said money was given very late from the beginning of the scheme, added that the last tranche of the money for 2019 farming season is yet to be paid as well.
He said farmers can’t make repayment, while that the scheme was facing several challenges in the state.
The Bank of Agriculture is better placed like the Bank of Industry (BOI) as development banks to take responsibility in administering money from government that is aimed at promoting agricultural production in the country.
Furthermore, an expert, Dr Shehu Babayo lamented that those in charge of Anchor Borrower in some states couldn’t get their farmers to repay due to the delay in funding from the apex bank.
“There were given these loans with huge collateral, yet they are finding it difficult access the fund.
Need to reposition agric sector
On efforts to reposition the agricultural sector, an expert Dr Alli Amodu while commending Nigerian farmers for their efforts at ensuring food security in the country despite the challenges they were facing called on the senate to initiate bills that would impact the sector positively.
Dr Amodu also lamented that the Nigeria Agricultural Insurance Corporation (NAIC) insurance does not cover all risks associated with farming and this confusion on what is covered is a discouragement.
He advocated that the government should continue to provide smart premium subsidies for farmers to enable them have access to agricultural insurance which is intended to protect their entire investments and ensure food security in the long run.
He further said efforts should be made at recapitalising the BOA to be better positioned to carry out its mandate.
“I believe that it is not within the mandate of the Central Bank of Nigeria as the apex and monitoring bank to get involved with loan facilities because they are the referee in financial sector.
YOU SHOULD NOT MISS THESE HEADLINES FROM NIGERIAN TRIBUNE
Buy and read digital replicas of your TRIBUNE titles by subscribing through E-VENDING
MONDAY LINES: America Has Trump; We Have Buhari
WHATEVER made Olubadan to have Adedibu/ We also have Omisore…(Oun t’ó m’Ólúbàdàn t’ó fi l’Ádédibú/ Àwa náa l’Ómísore)” This song was popular at Peoples Democratic Party (PDP) rallies in Osun State some years ago. The rhythm there is in the strong, no-nonsense characters of Alhaji Lamidi Adedibu and Otunba Iyiola… Read full story
Covid-19: Buhari May Ease Restrictions Today
There are indications that President Muhammadu Buhari may authorise further easing of the lockdown imposed on the country to contain the spread of Covid-19 following his receipt, on Sunday, of recommendations from the Presidential Task Force on the pandemic… Read full story
Mariam Sanda Killed Her Husband, Police Insist •Asks Appeal Court to affirm her death sentence
The Police has prayed the Abuja Division of the Court of Appeal to uphold the death sentence on Mariam Sanda by an Abuja High Court for killing her husband, Bilyaminu Bello. In its brief of argument filed in response to the appeal filed by Sanda’s legal team led by Joe Kyari Gadzama (SAN), the police submitted that the… Read full story
Return To Roundtable Or Face Consequences, FG Threatens Striking ASUU
Minister of Labour and Employment, Chris Ngige says there will be consequences if the striking Academic Staff Union of Universities (ASUU) refuse government’s overture to return to the negotiating table. Ngige disclosed this on Sunday in a statement signed by his media aide, Emmanuel Nzomiwu, in Enugu… Read full story
You Must Belong To All Of Us, Dangiwa Counsels Buhari
The former military governor of Kaduna State, Colonel Abubakar Dangiwa Umar (rtd) has counselled President Muhammadu Buhari against lopsided appointments, and called on him to “belong to all of us.” In an open letter to Buhari on Sunday, Dangiwa apparently responding to the claim of Buhari that he belongs to… Read full story
Lagos Begins Register-To-Open Initiative To Open State’s Economy
The Director-General, Lagos State Safety Commission, Mr Lanre Mojola, at the weekend disclosed that the commission is set to begin the Register-To-Open initiative of the state government, saying this was in line with the directives of Governor Babajide Sanwo-Olu’s administration towards reopening of the state economy… Read full story
Rape, Murder Of Our Student Shocking, Says UNIBEN
The University of Benin (UNIBEN) has expressed shock over the rape and subsequent murder of one of its students, Miss Vera Uwaila Omozuwa, a 100 level student of Microbiology. Vera, 22 was reportedly killed on Wednesday, May, 27 by the Rapists who savagely hit her head with the canister of a big fire extinguisher at… Read full story
At 65, Customs Boss, Hameed Ali Takes New Wife
The Comptroller General of the Nigeria Customs Service (NCS), Col. Hameed Ali (Rtd) over the weekend got married to a new bride, Hajiya Zainab Abdullahi in a wedding ceremony devoid of fanfare because of the prevalence of the COVID-19 pandemic in the country… Read full story
EDITORIAL: Lopside Appointments In Federal Agencies
THE case against the Muhammadu Buhari administration has always rested on two distinct arguments. The first argument is that, for reasons that space will not permit, the administration has lacked the creativity, urgency and agility needed to accomplish great things in a country as complex and invariably tightly wound as… Read full story
Will Nigerians Pay More For Fuel As Crude Price Rallies?
Nigeria’s efforts at removing fuel subsidy since the advent of democratic rule since 1999 have been unsuccessful. Recent announcement by the government that fuel subsidy is gone forever now seems to be just a political statement due to the fact that the government failed to provide any pricing template for May 2020… Read full story
Choices That Determine Leaders’ Success
Most leadership failures are traceable to poor choices. Poor choices made by leaders result in bad decisions which lead to undesirable results. How strong, stable and successful a company gets is determined by how sound and profound its choices are. The prosperity or otherwise of a nation is an indication of the kind of choices… Read full story
Leadership Beyond The Storm
He had led his team from one victory to another even in the face of stiff competition from the corporate behemoth that seemed to monopolize the landscape. He was formerly in the employ of Saujamite Ltd as the Personal Assistant to the CEO. However, as he demonstrated leadership in a way that put him firmly… Read full story
Lynching Akinwumi Adesina
The culture of lynching and genocide is deeply embedded in the gestalt of American race relations. And this, despite the Civil Rights Act 1964. As late as the 1960s in the Jim Crow South, it was the norm for the Ku Klux Kan (KKK) to fish out a young African-American for allegedly staring at a white woman and to hang him on a tree… Read full story
and then