The Central Bank of Nigeria will kick-off its rice anchor borrowers scheme next month with disbursement expected to begin in Kebbi state in the first instance.
An initial group of 5,000 farmers will benefit from the scheme which will act as catalyst for a quiet revolution underway in parts of the country to make Nigeria self-sufficient in rice production and cut almost a $1bn in import bill.
Vice President Yemi Osinbajo held a meeting last Thursday with governors of the eleven states with the highest potential for expanding rice cultivation and at that meeting; he gave the marching orders from President Muhammadu Buhari.
CBN Governor Godwin Emefiele who was at the meeting told BusinessDay the apex bank was keen to play a key role in the realisation of the rice production targets set at the meeting.
According to him, “the CBN is setting aside about N2 billion for disbursement, starting in about three weeks in Kebbi and more than 5,000 farmers will be involved.
“After the launch in Kebbi we will be going to Benue state and this scheme through the soft loans it provides, will ensure that farmers have the seedlings and fertilizer and some cash they need to expand cultivation and yield.”
The governor said the loans come with very flexible conditions and are at concessionary rates under an anchor borrowers scheme that compels a farmer to be linked to one of the identified rice millers.
The way the financing is structured, a farmer first sets his requirement for high yield seedlings and fertilizer, which is then paid for by the bank and what is left is given in cash to the farmer for a host of other requirements including transportation.
When the paddy rice is harvested, the miller comes to collect and then makes arrangement to pay back the loan. The bank works with the millers and government appointed extension workers to ensure proper application of the financing assistance geared to impacting farm yield.
The Federal Government is working to cut Nigeria’s rice deficit of about three million tons by half in the next one year.
Kebbi state is the leading in Nigeria’s rice league and governor Atiku Bagudu told BusisnessDay after the meeting with the Vice President that the state plans to increase paddy rice harvest from 800,000 metric tons to 1.2 million tons the next season which begins in November.
Bagudu said, “our approach in Kebbi is to look at rice cultivation as a business and the role of government is to facilitate what the farmers and millers are doing without engaging in unchecked spending by government as has been the case in the past.”
Governor Emefiele has consistently expressed concern about Nigeria’s food import bill that peaked recently at over $6bn. The country imports food products such as wheat, rice, flour, fish, tomato paste, textiles and sugar in large quantities annually.
Oluwarotimi Fashola, an agronomist and rice cultivation consultant says apart from cutting rice import bill, self sufficiency also means giving Nigerians a healthier option of rice given as his research shows, the rice imported to Nigeria gets here up to nine years after it was harvested.
By our reporter
