CBN approves N432 billion to fund cultivation of nine commodities

The Central Bank of Nigeria (CBN) says it has set aside about N432 billion to fund the value chains of nine commodities in the 2020 wet season.

The commodities, which are among most of the staple food items on the dining tables of most Nigerians, include rice, cassava, maize, cotton, oil palm, cowpea, livestock, poultry, and fish.

The bank said the funding is part of the plans the apex regulator has unveiled to build on the successes recorded under the Anchor Borrowers’ Programme (ABP) to boost food production and ensure food sufficiency.

The National Bureau of Statistics (NBS) said on Wednesday the latest rise in the consumer price index, which captures the inflation trend in the country, from 12.36 percent in April to 12.40 percent in May, was aided by the spike of food inflation during the month.

The statistics agency said the food inflation sub-index during the month, increased by 1.42 percent in May, up by 0.24 percent points from 1.18 percent in April.

Analysts say the rise in food prices is the direct consequence of the scarcity of basic foodstuff as a result the impact of the coronavirus pandemic, which negatively affected normal economic activities, including farming and agriculture.

But, the CBN said it will soon come up with a framework for the integration of non-interest window in all its intervention programmes, particularly the ABP and the Targeted Credit Facility (TCF) to support households and Micro, Small and Medium Enterprises (MSMEs) affected by the COVID-19 pandemic.

The Director, Development Finance Department of CBN, Yila Yusuf, said the target for the 2020 agricultural wet season was to advance about N432 billion, through the participating banks, in the value chains of nine commodities.

He said over 1.1 million farmers, cultivating over one million hectares of farmland were expected to benefit from the loans that would help to produce a collective output of 8.3 million metric tons.

Mr Yusuf said the focus on the 2020 wet season was to ensure the provision of improved seeds that would incentivise the farmers to return to their farms.

He maintained that the CBN adopted the value chain approach across all the commodities to ensure that every player along the entire value chain, from the farmers through to the processors, was financed.

This article originally appeared in The Premium Times. Photo: The Premium Times