Central Bank of Nigeria has reviewed the commercial credit scheme with the intention of making the N200 billion funding more accessible to farmers.
The apex bank in circular said “As part of its developmental role, the Central Bank of Nigeria (CBN) in collaboration with the Federal Government of Nigeria, represented by the Federal Ministry of Agriculture and Rural Development (FMARD) established the Commercial Agriculture Credit Scheme for promoting commercial agricultural enterprises in Nigeria, which is a sub–component of the Federal Government of Nigeria Commercial Agriculture Development Programme (CADP).
“This Fund will complement other special initiatives of the Central Bank of Nigeria in providing concessionary funding for agriculture such as the Agricultural Credit Guarantee Scheme (ACGS) which is mostly for small scale farmers, Interest Draw-back scheme, Agricultural Credit Support Scheme and other similar developmental initiatives.
“The scheme shall be financed from the proceeds of the N200 billion, three (3) year bond raised by the Debt Management Office (DMO). The fund shall be made available to participating bank(s), to finance commercial agricultural enterprises.”
The objectives of the scheme are to fast track development of the agricultural sector of the Nigerian economy by providing credit facilities to commercial agricultural enterprises at a single digit interest rate; enhance national food security by increasing food supply and effecting lower agricultural produce and product prices, thereby promoting low food inflation; reduce the cost of credit in agricultural production to enable farmers exploit the potentials of the sector; and increase output, generate employment, diversify the revenue base, increase foreign exchange earnings and provide input for the industrial sector on a sustainable basis”.
According to the CBN “The Scheme shall be under the management of the Central Bank of Nigeria through the Board of Directors and the Committee of Governors. The Committee of Governors shall be responsible for the overall administration of the Scheme while Development Finance Department shall be in charge of the day-to-day implementation of the Scheme.
The Development Finance Department shall also report to the Committee of Governors on all CACS issues”.
Key Agricultural commodities to be covered under the Scheme are cotton, oil palm, fruit trees. rubber, sugar, cane, jatropha carcus and cocoa.
Others are rice, wheat, cassava, potato, yam maize/soya. Also to benefit from the scheme are broilers and eggs production, meat, dairy and piggery, fingerlings and catfish, beans/millet/guinea corn. sesame seed, tomatoes and Vegetables
