NIRSAL Derisks Agric with N85.5billion

The Director-General, Feed Nigeria Summit, Mr Richard Mark Mbaram said the guarantee provided by Nigerian Incentive-Based Risk Sharing System for Agricultural Lending (NIRSAL) for N85.5billion bank loans to agric sector has  helped to boost  economic growth.
Mbaram said NIRSAL has demonstrated its commitment to boosting the agriculture sector,  by  guaranteeing loans along all segments of the value chain.

He said the organisation  has  stimulated the flow of affordable finance and investments into the agricultural sector by de-risking the agribusiness finance value chain,  building long-term capacity and institutionalising incentives for agricultural lending.

With NIRSAL intervention, he  said there is now the emergence of smart financial products,  providing farmers with lower interest rates for credit and  better loan  terms.
Mbaram  said it would hold the forte for NIRSAL and its activities against corruption allegation.
According to him, investigations showed that none of the said allegations, including witholding of N1 billion intervention fund is true.

He said he owed the economy and the agriculture sector a duty to guide and challenge what was wrong and with negative intent to mislead.
“Over the past week, a malicious and defamatory publication targeting NIRSAL and it’s Chief Executive Officer, Mr Abdulhameed Aliyu has been circulating in the virtual media space.
“It is pertinent to state that no objective reader of the said story, will be left in doubt as to the grave nature of the allegations therein contained.

“In consideration of the fact that the subject of these allegations, NIRSAL, is an apex actor in the Nigerian agricultural sector.
“One which AgroNigeria has systematically followed from inception, the Editorial Board decided to subject the publication to an in-house investigation.

May 15, 2019