The Central Bank of Nigeria, through the Agricultural Credit Guarantee Scheme Fund,has guaranteed an estimated N130.903billion loans given to farmers across the country.
The chairman of ACGSF, Mr Stephen Okon,disclosed this at the national award ceremony for the 2021 Best Farmer of the Year Award under the ACGSF held in Abuja.
He said a total of 1,232,326 loans valued N130.903b were guaranteed from inception to May 2022 out of which 973,646 beneficiaries had repaid a total of N98.91b.”
According to him,the Federal Capital Territory had, from January to May 2022, guaranteed a total of 82 loans under the scheme, valued at N22.580m,which brought the total guaranteed loans in the FCT from inception of the scheme in 1978 to May 2022 to 14,258, valued N1.748 billion.
He disclosed that 11,726 loans valued N801.058m were repaid under the scheme in the FCT from inception, noting that the records showed a high level of commitment of the officers in the FCT as well as the determination of the farmers to utilise the opportunities offered by the scheme to empower themselves and improve their lots.
“We do hope that before long, participants in the agricultural value chain in the FCT will take advantage of the opportunities provided in the Amended Act,” he said.
He also said that the disbursement was part of the proactive measures to encourage people and cushion the impact of the global crises on the economy and support the agricultural sector.
“Truly, the Federal Government, through the ACGSF scheme as well as other development finance interventions of the CBN, has continued to promote the quest for the nation to attain food sufficiency,” he noted.
The Abuja Branch Controller, CBN, Michael Onyeka Ogbu, said the ceremony was an expression of the apex bank’s management’s commitment to supporting hard work, innovation, and productivity in the agricultural value chain.
