Anchor borrowers’ programme gulped N57.9bn in two months, says CBN

The Central Bank of Nigeria (CBN) has disclosed that it disbursed the sum of N57.91 billion for the execution of 185,972 projects under the anchor borrowers’ programme (ABP).

This was disclosed on Tuesday by Godwin Emefiele at a news conference in Abuja.

Emefiele via a CBN communique said the funds, disbursed over a period of two months, were for projects meant for the cultivation of rice, wheat, and maize.

In November 2015, President Muhammadu Buhari launched the ABP initiative to boost agricultural production, improve foreign exchange and reverse Nigeria’s negative balance of trade on food.

The initiative captured smallholder farmers cultivating cereals (rice, maize, wheat etc.) cotton, roots and tubers, sugarcane, tree crops, legumes, tomato, and livestock.

Emefiele said at least four million smallholder farmers across Nigeria have been supported to boost the production of agricultural commodities in the country.

“Between April and May 2022, the bank released the sum of N57.91 billion under the anchor borrowers’ programme (ABP) to 185,972 new projects for the cultivation of rice, wheat, and maize, bringing the cumulative disbursement under the programme to N1.01 trillion, disbursed to over 4.2 million smallholder farmers cultivating 21 commodities across the country,” Emefiele said.

“The bank further disbursed the sum of N1.50 billion, under the accelerated agriculture development scheme (AADS), to one (1) new youth-led project, piloted and funded through the Government of Ondo State for the acquisition of assets for oil-palm cultivation and the establishment of poultry farms.

“This brings the total disbursement under the Scheme to N21.23 billion for 10 state-led and three (3) private sector-led projects.

“In addition, the Bank released N21.73 billion to finance seven (7) large-scale agricultural projects under the Commercial Agriculture Credit Scheme (CACS).

“The funds were utilized for the establishment of a ranch and milk processing facility; procurement of feed and medication for livestock/dairy production; construction of a 300 metric-tonne per day oil mill in Gusau, Zamfara State; acquisition and installation of an agrochemical factory; as well as purchase and stockpiling of homegrown maize for animal feed production. This brings the cumulative disbursement under this scheme to N741.05 billion for 674 projects in agro-production and agro-processing.”