Ogbeh Charges Boi to Increase Sector Lending

In its bid to move away from its monolithic source of income and accelerate the diversification of the economy, the Federal Government has called on the Bank of Industry to increase lending to the agriculture sector and its value chain. The Minister of Agriculture and Rural Development, Chief Audu Ogbeh, gave the charge, when the management team of BoI, led by the bank's Acting Managing Director, Mr. Waheed Olagunju, paid him a working visit in Abuja. Ogbe said there was the urgent need to boost productivity along the agricultural value chain, particularly, with the attention of the current administration focusing on diversification to non-oil areas.

While commending the new management of the bank for the zeal with which it carries the mandate of the development finance institution, the minister noted that if the nation must increase the level of output of the sector, more funds should be channeled to the youth segment, who have the needed energy to drive it. According to him, there is a lot of disenchantment in the country as a result of the huge level of unemployment.

The minister said government would put in place adequate mechanism as well as the needed support to ensure that borrowers repay the loans. To achieve this, he said the ministry is planning to build an agro-processing park for young people, stressing that this would assist in reducing some of their operating costs. He said the park, to be modelled after the one built in China would have all the necessary infrastructure to support businesses. In his response, the BoI boss said the request by the minister was in line with the objective of the bank in reducing the level of poverty and unemployment in the country. Olagunju said, "we assure you that we are up to the task. We are ready to support the ministry and we will come up with business loan solution within the shortest time possible to fit your requests." The BoI boss also expressed the determination of the bank to further strengthen the existing collaboration between the bank and the ministry with a view to providing the needed funding to enable it play its catalytic role to the nation's economy. The meeting, which is aimed at further strengthening the existing relationship between the bank and the ministry, dates back to 2009 when both parties signed partnership agreement.

Culled from the Guardian Newspaper.

Bank of Agriculture’s performance deteriorates in 2015

The declining financial performance of the Bank of Agriculture deteriorated in 2015 as its losses shot up by 3,742 percent to N7.1 billion. Meanwhile financial performance of Nigeria Security Printing and Minting Company (NSPM) or The Mint, improved during the year as its losses dropped by 94 percent to N345 million in 2015. This was disclosed by the Central Bank of Nigeria (CBN) in its Consolidated and Separate Financial Statements for the year ended 2015 released last week.

The Bank of Agriculture (BoA) is one of the seven associates companies of the CBN. Others are Nigeria Interbank Settlement System (NIBSS), African Finance Corporate (AFC), National Economic Reconstruction Fund (NERFUND), Nigerian Export Import Bank (NEXIM), Bank of Industry, Financial market Dealers Quote OTC (Plc). The CBN statement revealed that all the associate companies made profit in 2015 except BoA and the Mint recorded losses.

Analysis of the financial performance of BoA revealed that total loss rose sharply from N185 million in 2014 to N7.108 billion in 2015. Though revenue rose by 50 percent to N1.8 billion from N1.2 billion, the bank went from gross income N3.2 billion in 2014 to gross loss of N2.5 billion in 2015, implying sharp increase in losses to bad loans Furthermore its total expenses jumped by 35 percent or N1.2 billion from N3.4 billion to N4.6 billion.

The Bank was incorporated on 24 November 1972 as Nigerian Agricultural Bank Limited, changed its name to the Nigerian Agricultural and Co-operative Bank Limited (NACB) in 1978 and later changed to Nigerian Agricultural Co-operative and Rural Development Bank Limited (NARCDB) on 29 December 2000. It enlarged it object clause to include the total development activities of the Peoples Bank of Nigeria and also acquired the risk assets of the Family Economic Advancement Program (FEAP).

On 6 October 2010, the Bank further changed to Bank of Agriculture Limited. The Bank is fully owned by the Federal Government of Nigeria through the Ministry of Finance Incorporated and the Central Bank of Nigeria. The Bank grants Micro and Macro loans for Agricultural production, processing and marketing and other financial services, but as from 1 April 2006, marketing ceased to be one of the Bank’s principal activities. It also engages in the business of stimulation of rural savings as well as provision of loans to small scale enterprises in order to develop the economic base of the low income populace.

Mint records N345m loss
The financial statement revealed that the Nigeria Security Printing and Minting Company (NSPM) or Mint recorded a loss of N345 million in 2015. This however represents 94 percent decline when compared with the N5.5 billion loss incurred in 2014. The Company’s revenue rose by N5.31 billion or 29.6 percent to N23.2 billion from N17.89 billion. Cost of sales rose 33.3 percent to N20.22 billion from N15.19 billion while administrative cost dropped by 37 percent to N2.96 billion from N4.7 billion. Though the company earned N275 million as finance income, up by 17 from N235 million in 2014, its finance cost, interest paid on loans, jumped by 269 percent to N1.22 billion from N33 million in 2014.
By Babajide Komolafe
The Vanguard Newspaper

Use us to achieve agric change agenda, ABU urges FG

The Ahmadu Bello University (ABU), Zaria has identified training of youth in agribusiness as one of the effective ways of addressing unemployment and diversification of Nigeria’s economy, which are cardinal goals of the present administration.

The Director of the ABU’s Division of Agricultural Colleges (DAC), Professor Muhammad Y. Fatihu made this known during the 32nd joint convocation ceremony of the division, saying that DAC has the mandate of training middle class agricultural personnel who are central to the development of agriculture at the grassroots.

Fatihu however said that lack of funding is relegating the activities of the institute to the background and that has made the achievement of its mandate difficult.
He said the removal of colleges of agriculture from the beneficiaries of the Tertiary Education Trust Fund (Tetfund) grants is not only negatively affecting the colleges, but discouraging youths in participating in agriculture. He therefore called on the National Assembly to facilitate the review of that Act in favour of the agricultural colleges.

The 3,534 graduands were urged to contribute their quota in the
developmental process of the country by engaging in agric related entrepreneurial ventures.

This call was made by Professor Yahaya Shehu Abubakar of the Tafawa Balewa University, Bauchi in the convocation
lecture titled; “Colleges of agriculture and entrepreneurship development: A gateway to poverty alleviation.”
Culled from The Daily Trust.

FG urged to exploit livestock agric potentials

The Manager of Yobe Livestock Development Programme, Dr Mustapha Gaidam, on Sunday advised the Federal Government to exploit the potentials in livestock agriculture to reposition Nigeria’s economy and create employment.
Gaidam told journalists in Damaturu that the sub-sector has the capacity to raise the country’s Gross Domestic Product.

He urged federal and state governments to establish livestock skill acquisition centres to train youths in poultry, animal husbandry, fish farming, dairy and beef production.

“This will address the beef, dairy, poultry and fish needs of the country to guarantee food security, generate revenue and provide employment. To make this work, government should partner with financial institutions for credit scheme to beneficiaries, while technical experts are engaged to provide technical skills,” said the general manager.

Gaidam projected an annual employment of 6,000 youths under livestock production while the skill centres would serve as centres for research and data collection for national planning.

He said the economic crunch suffered by the country should serve as a wake up call towards diversifying the economy against over dependence on oil.

“Nigeria should see the fall in oil price as an opportunity to open up other sources of revenue that will develop the economy and provide employment to the citizenry.”

The general manager said: “There are rich unexploited potentials in livestock agriculture in every part of Nigeria with the capacity to improve the economy of the citizenry and to boost revenue base of the nation.” (NAN)

Culled from The Sun.

Agriculture best sector that offers continent escape from poverty -NEPAD

The CEO of the New Partnership for Africa's Development (NEPAD), Ibrahim Assane Mayaki, has said that agriculture still remains the best sector that offers the continent escape from poverty.

He said of all the challenges that Africa faces, agriculture is one that transcends and embraces all the other. "Agriculture, which employs or provides livelihoods to 60% of the population while contributing 20-30% to Africa’s GDP, is the sector that could by itself enable to save the greatest number of Africans from extreme poverty while giving them their dignity back."

Speaking at the opening of the 12th CAADP PP which took place in Accra, he said regrettably, agriculture attracts less than 5% of lending from financial institutions in the continent, leaving farmers and agricultural enterprises starved of the capital they need to operate and grow their businesses. "Our continent today runs the risk of missing a unique opportunity to develop and offer its youth the jobs it has the obligation to provide if it wants to avoid social implosion."

The Meeting was organised around the theme “Accelerating Implementation of CAADP through Innovative Financing and Renewed Partnership."

Africa imports the equivalent of $ 50 billion of food every year. Yet more than half of the arable land unexploited in the world are on the continent!

He said to solve the agricultural equation, we must join forces and continue our efforts to define a common agricultural policy. "In 2003, in Maputo, we really started to turn the corner in laying the foundations for pan-African agricultural initiatives. The Heads of State and Government of the African Union then decided to devote 10% of their national budgets to agriculture."

He added that in 2014, in Malabo, they reiterated their commitment to further increase investment, both public and private, in agriculture. So, he said innovative financing will be key in unlocking Africa’s Green Revolution.

Innovative financing is a means of mobilising additional resources for investment in agriculture or solving long-running market failures that can unlock private investment. Now we should aim at a growth model that is public-sector enabled, and private sector scaled. Because of the rural and dispersed nature of agricultural production, where banks and formal financial institutions often lack a presence, mobile technology provides a convenient and low-cost distribution channel to reach farmers and agro-enterprises with electronic payments and information products, as well as savings, credit, and insurance products, among others. It can also help to transfer targeted financial support for small farmers and agribusiness.

Mayaki noted that investments in infrastructure will also help drive increased private investment and production in the agriculture sector. Often resulting in public goods that benefit a broad base of economic activity, investments in irrigation, transport and market infrastructure in particular are critical to improving economic returns and productivity in the agriculture sector.

The next step is to put in place a system that ensures the prices and the flow (or storage) of production, combined with a system of variable levies at the external borders of Africa (taxes on imports) protecting productions potential competition from products from outside. This will require innovative financial mechanisms and technologies as well.

He added "a proactive agricultural policy should be common because it requires us to share not only our resources, but also our minds and our wills. It should be common because it cannot be implemented without regional infrastructure, energy and logistics in particular, that will allow our farmers to compete and enter into a process of value creation. We should harness the latest innovations and technologies because Africa has no other option but to leapfrog if it wants to realize its tremendous potential.

In her opening remarks at the CAADP PP meeting, Ms Tumusiime Rhoda Peace, Commissioner for Rural Economy and Agriculture of the African Union Commission said, the only way to sustainably deliver on African agricultural commitments is to mobilize our own continental human and financial resources. “We need to build strong partnerships for an accountable and efficient implementation of the CAADP Agenda since investment in agriculture makes good economic sense,” she said.

Culled from The Vanguard Newspaper.