BY BANYO TEMITAYO
THE Nigerian Incentive-Based Risk Sharing System for Agricultural Lending has facilitated over N148 billion in finance and investments for agriculture and agribusiness.
Managing Director, NIRSAL, Aliyu Abdulhameed, who disclosed this at a media briefing in Abuja, said the company also facilitated over N30 billion into the agric sector from January last year to date.
He said the organisation grew its balance sheet to N140 billion, adding that equity rose by 1,415 per cent and total assets by 87 per cent through prudent management of resources.
NIRSAL is a wholly-owned corporation of the Central Bank of Nigeria.
Aliyu said though the company suffered a a stall during the COVID-19 induced lockdown in 2020, NIRSAL had to continue working.
“The stomach does not know whether there is pandemic or not,” he said.
He added, “In the course of the last 13 months, we facilitated the flow of over N30 billion into agricultural value chains from commercial banks and other sources.
“Even though our operations suffered a stall during the lockdown of 2020, our technological depth gave us a pathway to return to work while remaining safe and socially-distanced. As you know, it was important to continue, even increase, food and raw materials production as the pandemic bit harder.
“As enablers of actors in the agricultural value chain, we remained operational for those who were allowed by the Federal Government to move around for the purpose of producing food and rendering essential services in the society.”
“By remaining operational, our numbers grew: As at fourth quarter 2020 (Q4 2020), we had achieved the following: Facilitated over N148 billion in finance and investments for agriculture and agribusiness; aggregated over 3,000 agro geo-cooperatives with 500,000 farmers on nearly 800,000 hectares of land; and enrolled 1.4 million persons onto innovative insurance products designed by NIRSAL in collaboration with a consortium of agricultural insurance underwriters,” the MD said.
