Farmers registered under Goshen Potato Farmers Co-operative said there is no way they can access the Commercial Agricultural Credit Scheme if the Federal Government does not review the conditions for borrowing.

The farmers who are members of the Potato Farmers Association of Nigeria (POFAN) said all their efforts to access the said credit scheme yielded no result as the banks were not willing to co-operate with them.

Speaking on behalf of the farmers in Abuja, Chief Dan Okafor, the president of POFAN explained that the group tried some banks but they refused to lend. He said the explanation he got was that only N40 billion was set aside for small scale farmers and they are not permitted to start disbursing the money because they Central Bank of Nigeria (CBN) has not yet given them guidelines on how to distribute the sum meant for small scale farmers.

Chief Okafor had earlier told Daily Trust that the farmers were met with very stiff conditions for borrowing when they went to the banks to access the loan but the banks are now saying the money is meant for big commercial farmers.

"Our members have very big farmlands in Nyanya, Mararaba and many other places but they said we cannot get this loan so the Federal Government needs to do something if they really have us farmers in their heart."

"We had a meeting with first bank on the issue of the loan and it is clear that the government has not gotten it right and we would continue to worry them and hoping that things would change", he said.

When asked if they have gone to any of the microfinance to access some loan, he said even the microfinance banks are charging very high interest rates.

Another farmer Caroline Weribe said Goshen farmers are ready to feed Nigeria with food from their farms but the government is not easing the difficulty of getting tractors for mechanized farming and other modern farm equipment.

According to her:"We have up to 200 members and I want government to come to our farm and see how serious we are. We are ready to send potato outside Nigeria let the whole world know as potato farmers but government must be responsible."

Someof the banks contacted refused to talk and would not want to be quoted.

http://allafrica.com/stories/201003300405.html

The N200 Billion Commercial Agriculture Credit Scheme
http://www.businessdayonline.com/index.php?option=com_content&view=article&id=2652:the-n200-billion-commercial-agriculture-credit-scheme&catid=96:columnists&Itemid=350
Friday, 08 May 2009


Not too long ago the Federal Government introduced a N200 billion Commercial Agriculture Credit Scheme. This is part of government's response to the current global economic recession, which is already having its tool on both food production and agricultural development. The scheme, which is a bond to be floated by the Debt Management Office (DMO) with technical assistance from the Central Bank of Nigeria (CBN), will be administered by the United Bank for Africa (UBA) and the First Bank of Nigeria (FBN). The aim is to enable farmers exploit the untapped potentials of the agricultural sector, lower cost of agricultural production, generate surplus for export, increase Nigeria's foreign earnings and diversify its revenue base.

Those to benefit from the scheme include: Corporate/Large Scale Integrated Commercial Farms or Agro-Allied Enterprises, with asset of N350million (excluding land) and capacity to grow such asset to N500million in three years; and, Non-Integrated Commercial Farms/Agro Enterprises with asset of not less than N200million (excluding land). Similarly, State Governments and the Federal Capital Territory (FCT) could borrow up to 20% of the bond proceeds for onward lending to farmers through Specialized Agencies/Secretariats, even as the fund targets the following agricultural enterprises and commodities: cultivation of rice, cassava, cotton, oil palm, wheat, rubber, sugar cane, jatropha carcus, fruits and vegetables; livestock (dairy, poultry and piggery) and fisheries; processing, storage and marketing of targeted commodities; and, any other activity as may be specified from time to time. The Fund will be supervised by a Project Management Committee (PMC) made up of officers of the Central Bank of Nigeria (CBN), Executive Director of National Food Security Agency (NFSA), Federal Ministry of Finance (FMF), Debt Management Office (DMO) and Representative of Large Scale Farmers.

This is a commendable development especially coming at this period of global economic recession. I am convinced that if well implemented, the Scheme is capable of kick starting a revolution in Nigeria's agricultural sector. For a very long time the country had dissipated energy and resources trying to develop its agriculture. The best that came out of it was to produce just enough food for the citizens and perhaps a little more for the markets. Reasonable progress was made in the late colonial period and perhaps, the first decade of independence, when Nigeria made substantial revenue from the sector although not enough to justify its potential and given that over 70% of its population is engaged in it. The challenges of Nigeria's agriculture range from lack of finance, inadequate processing and storage facilities to poor marketing.

It is because of this that many also argue that even the recently introduced N200 billion Commercial Agriculture Credit Scheme (at least the way it is presently packaged) may not be able to sufficiently address challenges of this sector. First, this is given that previous initiatives ended up either not being implemented or were poorly implemented due to bureaucratic bottlenecks. Consider for instance that more than two years after it was introduced, no one has yet assessed the 'N70 billion Textile Revival Fund'. What assurances do we then have that this same fate may not befall the new Commercial Agriculture Credit Scheme? Â
Secondly, there is a more serious issue, which has to do with government's decision to domicile the fund in only two banks (UBA and First Bank). What happens to farmers who are presently not doing business with either of these banks or those who are resident in areas where the two banks may not have branches? Certainly, it would have been better if the facility was spread among all the banks or at least many of them, not only to encourage access but also to tap the expertise of some of these banks, which over the years have been doing business in this sector. Restricting the Scheme to just a few commodities to the detriment of others may turn out to be a problem later on. For instance commodities like Cocoa, Groundnut and Gum Arabic should have been included. This would make the fund competitive and enable government to achieve its long term objective.

Aside from the above, the constitution of the Project Management Committee (PMC), to oversee the Fund, clearly excludes some of the critical stakeholders. I am aware that there is the All Farmers Association of Nigeria (AFAN) and the Federation of Agricultural Commodity Associations of Nigeria (FACAN). It is important to include these two bodies given that they know their members (who in deed are the real farmers as against political farmers who may eventually emerge).

Finally, I am tempted to argue that the capital requirements for the fund would make it almost impossible for Nigeria's indigenous farmers to participate. Of course, as in the case of the Export Expansion Grant (EEG) and similar other initiatives, the foreign well capitalized companies would be at an advantage. But where does it leave us? What it means is that Nigeria's businesses would for a long time play the underdog. At the same time, given the critical nature of the situation now, can we possibly afford to discriminate? Again, is it possible for us to find a way to accommodate our indigenous private sector that are, the real stakeholders in this economy?

I welcome the introduction of this scheme. It will succeed if well implemented. Having promoted small scale agriculture for too long, we must now leapfrog Nigeria's economy to achieve sustainable development and realize the targets of Vision 20-2020.

Banking Sector Lacks Capacity To Finance Agriculture – CBN

http://www.leadershipnigeria.com/news/headlines/14658-banking-sector-lacks-capacity-to-finance-agriculture--cbn

Written by Ese Awhotu, Abuja
Wednesday, 05 May 2010 22:36

The Governor of the Central Bank of Nigeria (CBN),Sanusi Lamido Sanusi, yesterday said the financial system in Nigeria and other sub-Saharan African countries does not have the capacity, skills and resources to single-handedly finance the expected exponential growth in the agricultural sector.

Sanusi, who disclosed this at the fourth Agribanks Forum of the African Rural and Agricultural Credit Association (AFRACA) which opened in Abuja, yesterday ,said sub-Sahara African countries must evovle strategies to attract long term financing in the form of bonds, debentures, venture capital funds and business ansles.

"These are long term financial options that could make African farmers and entrepreneurs to invest in capital equipment and enhance their productivity," he noted sanusi said that Regulatory and legal reforms must be undertaken to empower corporate investors such as trust and insurance companies pension funds and other institutional investors to provide sustainable source of the much sought long term financing via vehicles such as bonds, warrants, leases, as well as equity.

Sanusi gave assurance that the impact of the N200 billion (US$1.3b) raised through bonds by the Federal Government to finance large scale agricultural enterprises in the country in 2009, would soon be felt in the economy.

The managing director of the Nigerian Agricultural,Cooperative and Rural Development Bank(NACRDB),Babale Umaru Girei, had disclosed at the conference that "So,far the bank has disbursed the sum of N38.5 billion($256million) to finance various types of agricultural activities nationwide". He said out of the amount disbursed the sum of N28.9 billion went to micro-credit beneficiaries.

In his welcome address, the Minister of Finance,Dr. Olusegun Akenga, said the ministry of finance has always collaborated with the CBN to ensure that credit finance does not constitute a hindrance in the agricultural sector.

Akanga who was represented by the Accountant General of the Federation, expressed the Federal Government's commitment to addressing the issue of wealth creation and poverty reduction,

Two international agencies grant Nigeria agric loans 
Jul 22 2009
http://234next.com/csp/cms/sites/Next/Money/Business/5438100-147/Two_international_agencies_grant_Nigeria_agric.csp


By Ayodamola Owoseye, with agency reports



The Nigerian agricultural sector has received grants from two international agencies to help develop and improve capacity for food production in the country.

The grants approved by the two international agencies are to help farmers increase their incomes and to meet the market demands in the agricultural sector. The International Funds for Agricultural Development (IFAD) gave a loan of $40 million in which twelve states from the six geo-political zones in the country are to benefit from.

The Minister of Agriculture and Water Resources, Dr Sayyadi Ruma, told the journalists in Abuja on Tuesday that the loan given by (IFAD) was in support of the implementation of the Rural Financing Institution Building Programme (RUFIN).

Mr. Ruma said the State that would benefit from the loan are Adamawa, Bauchi, Katsina, Zamfara, Nasarawa, Lagos, Oyo, Benue, Anambra, Imo, Akwa Ibom and Edo.

About 345,000 households spread across the states would benefit from the programme, including 138,000 women headed-households. The targeted beneficiaries include the vulnerable poor families and families that are food insecure.

The other direct beneficiaries will be 70 micro-finance banks, 70 non-bank micro finance institutions, the CBN, Nigerian Agricultural Cooperative and Rural Development Bank, as well as research institutions, he said.

Mr. Ruma said RUFIN is targeted at the poor because they lack access to financial service; they have limited access to land, while their agricultural productivity is low.

The funds, which is to be released by the United States African Development Foundation, unlike the one by the IFAD will have the Da All Green Seeds Limited (DAGS), located in Zaira City, Kaduna State as a beneficiary.

The chairman of USADF John Agwunobi said that "USADF is an agency of the U.S. government, and its funding comes from the American people for the purpose of supporting economic development at the community level in Africa.

DAGS produces sorghum seeds to 2,052 farmers on credit who sell back the harvested sorghum to DAGS at above market rates and DAGS then processes and sells to wholesale producers of malt drinks using sorghum as a main ingredient.

Mr Agwunobi said "the five year grant will enable DAGS to increase production by purchasing more seeds and expanding its buyback programme from farmers, increasing farmers' salaries.

Specifically, the grant will finance a fund for buyback of sorghum, an input fund to allow farmers to purchase improved inputs, website development and radio advertising, capacity building of the farmer groups, and training".

Agriculture funding

The government has been promising various agricultural funds to the farmers in order to help develop the agricultural sector and reduce the country's reliance on crude oil as a source for foreign exchange.

The various funds are yet to be received by the farmers as the N200 billion agricultural funds promised by the Central Bank of Nigeria and the Federal Government is yet to be disbursed due to the controversies on the disbursement guidelines and the banks to carry out the disbursement.

A source at the Ministry, however, said that there is a possibility for the N200 billion fund disbursement to begin in the next few weeks. The News Agency of Nigeria reports that the IFAD loan, to be repaid in 40 years and with a 10 year grace period will attract 0.75 per cent service charge annually.

Time to salvage Nigeria’s agricultural sector
Written by Afolabi Sotunde
Sunday, 21 February 2010 02:42

Apart from human need for food for survival, globally, food counts significantly in meeting both individual and societal needs. In Nigeria, agricultural development plays a vital role for economic survival and as an alternative source of revenue for government, aside petroleum. Perhaps, this necessitated the inclusion of agricultural development and food security as part of the seven-point agenda of President Umaru Musa Yar’adua’s administration.
However, as laudable as the initiative of the Federal Government under the leadership of President Yar’adua towards revitalizing the nation agricultural sector is, this sector is gradually collapsing due to inept and self-centered leadership.

From his educational background and throughout his career up till the time he was appointed Minister of Agriculture, he, had no relationship with the sector. His educational background reveals that he holds a Bachelor of Arts in History, a Post-Graduate Certificate in Public Information Management, a certificate in Labour Relations, Masters in International Affairs and Diplomacy, ABU, Zaria, and a PhD in International Relations, University of Abuja.


Since his appointment as agriculture minister, there has not be the regular meeting of the agricultural council. Records show that the council’s meeting only held on a few occasions in the last three years, and those were when there were emergencies. For a meaningful development to take place in the sector, for the national programme on food security to be realistic, focus should be on the implementation of the programmes.

The councils meeting on agriculture comprises the stakeholders of the very important sector across in the 36 states of the federation. The regular meetings of the council would have afforded the country the opportunity to inject fresh ideas into the sector. Despite the introduction of the N200 billion commercial agricultural credit scheme, all over Nigeria, there is looming scarcity of food, with prices of food items gradually becoming unaffordable for an average Nigerian.

It is no longer news that as laudable as the scheme is, it is not making the desired impact because only very few states have been able to access the credit scheme. Even in the few states, the credit is being withdrawn again. Let the minister of agriculture tell Nigerians how much has been realized as bank interest through the fixed deposit of the fund. The minister also needs to explain the beneficiaries of the interest accrued from the fixed deposit.


It is dis-heartening to note that the council on agriculture that would have raised questions on the grey areas as regards the implementation of the federal government’s policy on agriculture is already rendered ineffective due to lack of regular meetings. The fact that Nigeria spends an estimated $5 billion annually on food importation is a challenge and a consequence of government’s inability to achieve food security.

Unfortunately, the provision of adequate financial scheme as a process of food production is already a mirage in the country. The success in the drive to attain the goals of food security and economic development of food security and economic development is premised on a good agricultural policy and adequate financial backing. All over the country, Nigerians are struggling for an access to sufficient, safe and nutritious foods to meet their dietary needs and food preferences for active and healthy life. However, it is painful that several billions of naira was being wasted annually on policies that were never implemented. Nigerians have been short-changed and there is need for stakeholders in the agriculture sector to rise up and demand their rights.


Throughout the country, Nigerian farmers are suffering they are being cheated by those meant to protect their interest. Fertilizer procurement and distribution is being shrouded in scams. Development of improved seedlings and manpower development through regular training for farmers remain only a propaganda. Already, there is public skepticism and apathy over the campaign for food production.

In a related development, one may add, where has the N240 million Natural Resource Fund realized from deductions for allocations to the 36 state governments gone into? Is it gone down the drain? We understand that the deductions were made over a period of 10 years. The money, it is being speculated, was diverted from its original purpose into an un-intended purpose of building silos all over the country. In spite of the fact that a large sum of money was spent on building additional silos for food reserve sand storage, there is no food price stability in the country.

Presently, it is most likely that the state of Nigeria’s agriculture when juxtaposed with the amount expended on the sector, is the least productive in Africa. This is evident in the degree of high level of rural poverty and recurring food crisis which is penetrating the urban centres. It is now called an aspect of urban poverty.


Nigeria may afford to pay lip service to other sectors of the economy, but it can’t do so to agriculture and food security. This current scenario, where by the ministry of agriculture seems to be playing politics with Nigeria’s agriculture sector portends a grave consequence, not only now but also for the future of Nigeria.

There is need for the federal government to get it right in the key sectors of energy, agriculture and national security. This can only be achieved by putting right what has been done wrong. By ensuring that round pegs are put in round holes. In the agricultural sector, except drastic measures are taken to check the situation, Nigerian farmers will continue to operate under a heavy burden, irrespective of the huge budgetary allocations to the sector annually.

http://dailytrust.com/sunday/index.php?option=com_content&view=article&id=2919:time-to-salvage-nigerias-agricultural-sector&catid=7:comment-a-debate&Itemid=113

Nigeria: Whither N200 Billion Commercial Agriculture Loan?
15 March 2010

http://allafrica.com/stories/201003160372.html


Lagos — Sometime last year the Central Bank of Nigeria (CBN) in collaboration with the Federal Ministry of Agriculture and Water Resources (FMA&WR) came out with a N200 billion credit facility, which was to be disbursed to farmers under the Commercial Agriculture Credit Scheme (CACS).

The aim was to among other things: provide credit facilities to commercial agriculture enterprises at single digit interest rates; enhance national food security by increasing food supply and effectively lower the prices of agricultural produce and products, thereby promoting low food inflation; reduce cost of credit in agricultural production, enable farmers exploit the full potentials of the sector; and, increase output, generate employment, diversify the revenue base of the economy, increase foreign exchange earnings and provide input for the industrial sector on a sustainable basis.

Our stand then, which obviously has still not changed, was that considering the multifarious challenges of Nigeria's agricultural sector, this was not likely to be the required antidote, given that it targets a minute percentage of the system. And as if we knew what lay ahead, only a few months after, what we already have before us are allegations and counter allegations from stakeholders in the matter. Whereas the farmers allege that the money truly does not exist, since according to them, no one has yet assessed it, perhaps, owing to the stringent conditions attached; the banks on the other hand claim that the disbursement has since commenced. Whatever is the case, it does seem as if we have another case similar to the saga of the Textile Revival Fund on our hands. It is instructive to recall how government had not too long ago politicised the issue of reviving the country's ailing textile industry, first with a N70 billion facility and later with an additional N100 billion, and yet on ground nothing seem to be happening.

To say the least, we are not amused at all and we restate our earlier position that this strategy will never work given the attitude of Nigerians to such loans. It is either not going to be released at all as is presently been alleged or may never get to the real users. Neither were we surprised with what was published in one of the National Dailies last week (Nigerian Tribune) that the money was missing. What Nigerians are yearning for is an enabling environment that encourages business development. Such an environment would on its own support businesses to attract loans and also put them in a position to repay them. Frequent recourse to handouts, which is what we attribute the N200 billion loan facility to be, are bound to have an inflationary impact on the economy. As a matter of fact, the problems of Nigeria's agricultural sector are so many that a N200 billion loan facility will amount to just a drop in the ocean. It can never make any meaningful impact. How will this money improve the lives of the ordinary farmer in the village, who in spite of his difficulties still produces virtually all the food available in the urban centres? Will government not use it to buy more tractors to be parked at the government houses without any to work with in the fields? Is this largesse to settle political loyalists given the involvement of State Governments in it? Are we sharing a part of the national cake? We see this simply as a total misplacement of priority.

Consider also that the fund is targeted towards improving the fortunes of a few products including cotton, oil palm, rubber, sugar cane, rice, maize, cassava, wheat, dairy, poultry, piggery and fishery. So what happens to the rest? Are these the country's only areas of strength? We also find the choice of businesses to benefit from the fund equally surprising. We are told that to be eligible, the business must not be less than N300 million for an integrated farm with prospects of growing the assets to N500 million within the next three years; or N200 million for non-integrated farms/agro-enterprise having the prospect to grow the net asset to N350 million in the next three years. Except the few farms owned and managed by expatriates, how many indigenous firms engaged in this sector are at this level? Did our policy makers consider the fact that small holder farmers constitute not less than 80% of all farm holdings in the country?


Apart from tackling comprehensively the debilitating challenges of the economy, which has made it almost impossible for businesses to thrive in Nigeria; we think that agriculture being at least for now, the backbone of Nigeria's economy, requires a little more attention. It is indeed embarrassing that of Nigeria's 98.3 million ha of land, with up to 74 million ha being good for farming, perhaps only about 60 - 70% is presently utilized even as Nigeria is confronted with the challenge of hunger and poverty. Again, if truly the aim of the N200 million Agricultural loan is to attract farmers to engage in commercial agriculture as a buffer to the depreciating revenues from oil, then, its initiators must go back to the drawing board with a view to getting it to address the problems of the peasant farmers.

[size=14pt]N200 Billion Agric Loan - NEC Blames Delay on Banks[/size]


Abuja — The National Economic Council (NEC) rose from its monthly meeting in Abuja yesterday delivering a scathing criticism on the nation's banking sector, which it blamed for the inability of the Federal Government to disburse the N200 billion agricultural credit loans for small and medium scale farmers in the country.

The N200 billion facility was approved in 2009 by the late President Umaru Yar'Adua to help small and medium scale farmers improve agricultural productions and guarantee food security in the country.

Addressing State House correspondents, after the monthly NEC meeting, at the Presidential Villa, Abuja, Rotimi Amaechi, governor of Rivers State, who was joined by Murtala Nyanko, governor of Adamawa State, said out of the N200 billion, only N70 billion has so far been disbursed.

He said the banks holding the funds have made it impossible for the farmers to get the loan despite the efforts made by the states to access the agricultural credit facilities."N70billion has been disbursed, remaining N130 billion. A lot of the problems are emanating from the banks as most states that are being given their ISPO are not able to access it for one reason or the other and that is why a committee has been set up to look at what the problems are and how to find a solution to ensure that forthwith we are moving forward to achieve the objective of food security," he said.

The committee to be chaired by Central Bank Governor, Sanusi Lamido Sanusi, is composed of six state governors, the ministers of finance and agriculture and it has been mandated to work out the modalities for the easy disbursement of the credit to the respective beneficiaries.

In his own remark, Nyanko said the council also directed the minister of foreign affairs to conduct proper research to determine who is entitled to hold official and diplomatic passports in the country.

"We also had a presentation on the issue of the passport public officers will hold and the category of persons that could hold them, the diplomatic status and the official passport. After the presentation we felt there was a need for further studies. So we asked the minister to go back and do proper research and work with the minister for foreign affairs and do a fresh joint presentation at the ext meeting," he said.

He said the meeting also directed the state governors to sell thevision 2020 programme to all Nigerians and the international communitywith a view to educating them properly on the programme.

Kobojunkie, do you have an update on these Loans or any beneficiaries in the last two years.

Pl kindly update me as I am interested in accessing it now.

Regards.

kobo, why is it called "goshen", any history or reason behind that?

snoring cos is boring.

Poultry Farming is one of the viable businesses that anyone can do starting at a small scale.It is true that many of the unemployed Nigerians have no access to capital required to set up a business.It is true that some of the commercial banks are not willing to finance agricultural ventures especially chicken farming.

A bank known as the Bank of Agriculture,owned by the Federal Government of Nigeria is giving out loans to genuine farmers who can prove their genuineness.The F.G.N has provisioned N200 Billion as loans to farmers and the steps to access the loan are straight forward if you are a genuine person with genuine intentions.If you are an unemployed Nigerian graduate looking for paid employment,pay attention to this post and take a step of faith to key into it.

The steps to obtain the loan are as follows:
1) Locate the office of the Bank of Agriculture that covers the area or local government area where your farm is situated and open an account with the bank with a minimum deposit of N3000.00

2) For the ‘Know Your Customer’ (KYC) requirements, you must present your NEPA Bill which confirms your place of residence + any of the approved means of identification such as International Passport, Drivers License, National Identity Card or Voters Registration Card.

3) Other requirements are:
Complete and signed account form
Complete and signed mandate card
Present 4 passport photographs of yourself

4) You must run and operate the account for at least 3 -6months before applying for the loan. Do not think that you can just open the account, abandon it and show up after 6 months for the loan. The loan is not the usual national cake and the bank, newly repositioned, is not fooled. If you play that old game, the bank will doubt your integrity and commitment to repay the loan if granted and that means you may not get it.

Running and operating the loan means that you make it an active account. This means making sure that you save money and withdraw from the account on a regular basis. The bank wants to see that there are transactions going on in the account. Therefore, you should make regular deposits and withdrawals on the account during the 6 month period to create an active relationship that makes the bank have confidence in you.

5) You must have an existing farm, at a fixed location and the farm must have its record of operations and activities on a daily basis neatly kept. The era of armchair farmers/political farmers/farms of no fixed address/classroom farmers are over. The bank will visit your farm for inspection when you apply for the loan.

6) The bank will check what you have on ground; see how far you have gone; what the loan is required for, and ensure that the loan is appropriate for what it is required. The bank wants to know whether you have an adequate knowledge of your area of farming business. You must be able to demonstrate the practical hands-on experience in your area of farming. The bank wants to know whether you have a project you are working on and the fund requirements. And within a month of the inspection, the loan will be approved if the bank is satisfied.

You can obtain a loan of N250,000.00 from the Bank of Agriculture without any collateral.With this amount,you can set up a small backyard chicken business that will pay more than the elusive salary job you are seeking. Some graduates earn N15,000.00 monthly in the name of earning a salary.What a pity!I will show you how to go about setting up a small chicken business with as low as N100,000.00.Check 1st signature below

One Mr Christopher,a graduate based in Akwa Ibom State,following my advice, started with 87 day old broilers and with a budget of N70,000.00. He lost only 3 of them and sold the remaining 84 at 7 weeks old for N1000.00 each. He made a neat profit.He is now looking for land to buy to do it on a larger scale.

What are you waiting for?
Get the location ready and put it into preparation before inviting the bank for inspection.
Then, go open an account with the Bank of Agriculture and operate it as required for at least 6 months.Make an estimate of the farm’s fund requirements and get it ready before applying for the loan.

The Banks are not lending to farmers in South West, but farmers in the North are getting loans in millions
Is it that the present government is encouraging Agriculture in the North and putting the South West at disadvantage so that we can always patronise North for the agricultural produce?
The local rice that Kebbi and Nassarawa took over the production today was started by Abakaliki, Ebonyi and Ogun State
I belong to a large Agricultural group and nothing is being done to encourage farmers here.
Could you believe that we applied for loan since january, we deposit 20% as part of requirement, up till now, nothing is being done. After wasting our precious time and our money is just lying fallow, some people have to withdraw their money and the bank would not say anything
This is sending a very wrong message from a government that wants to diversify the Nigerian economy.