He also said about $2 billion out of about $2.5 billion,
earmarked for key initiatives in the manufacturing, mining and agriculture,
services sectors had been disbursed to over three million farmers cultivating
over 4.7 million hectares of arable land in the 36 States and the Federal
Capital Territory (FCT) under the Anchors Borrowers’ Programme (ABP).
Speaking at a dinner session with the board of the United
Bank for Africa (UBA) in Abuja over the weekend, he noted that over 80 per cent
of the fund was targeted at the agricultural sector.
Also, the Chairman, UBA Group, Mr. Tony Elumelu, revealed
that the private sector coalition has put together the sum of N100 billion to help
fight insecurity and boost the capacity of security agencies, to be able to
deal with the issues challenges facing the country.
Emefiele said following the intervention programmes embarked
upon by the central bank since his assumption of office, the initiatives have
helped farmers to significantly improve their yields and contributed
significantly towards Nigeria’s journey towards food self-sufficiency.
He said, “For example, we have seen the re-emergence of the
rice pyramids. Rice production has increased to over 7.5 million metric tons
yearly, from less than four million metric tons recorded in 2015, prior to the
introduction of Anchor Borrowers Programme (ABP).
“There were only 15 standard rice mills in Nigeria before
the launch of the Anchor Borrowers Programme. As at today, we have over 50
standard and integrated rice mills creating jobs and reducing unemployment.
“All these were done in partnership with deposit money banks
who serve as our identification, risk appraisal and distribution mechanism for
these interventions.”
Emefiele said economic recovery had been aided by the growth
of over four million farmers, Small and Medium Enterprises (SMEs) and
manufacturers who are creating and growing businesses that are enabling growth
in manufacturing and ICT due to improved access to credit.
He said credit to the manufacturing had risen from 10 per
cent in 2014, to 16 per cent in 2021, while agriculture also witnessed growth
in credit from three per cent in 2013 to six per cent in 2022.
In his remarks on, “Food Security, Job Creation and the Role
of the Central Bank,” the CBN governor who was special guest at the forum,
stressed the critical role of banks and financial institutions in enabling more
inclusive growth of the economy following the series of external shocks that
had confronted economies globally.
Specifically, he pointed out that central banks and the
financial system have critical roles to play in powering the solutions to the
issues of food security and job creation on the African continent.
Emefiele said: “On assumption of office as Governor of the
Central Bank of Nigeria in June 2014, I indicated that my ultimate objective as
Governor would be to ensure that the CBN is noted for being a people focused
central bank where the decisions taken at the MPC must be those that impact
directly on the lives of our people.
“This objective was driven by some of the key challenges
facing the Nigerian economy, one of which was our heavy reliance on revenues
and foreign exchange earnings from the sale of crude oil.”
He said: “Close to 60 per cent of government revenues and 80
per cent of our foreign exchange earnings came from the sale of crude oil, even
though the petroleum sector represents less than 10 per cent of our GDP.
“Our dependence on earnings for crude oil fueled an
excessive dependence on imports, which came at the expense of constraining
growth in critical sectors of our economy such as agriculture and
manufacturing.
“It also exposed our economy to volatilities associated with
changes in the price of crude oil in global markets.”
Emefiele noted that with an annual population growth rate of
close to 2.8 per cent, it was important that all efforts are concentrated at
ensuring that employment opportunities were available for Nigerians
particularly in sectors that had the ability to absorb key segments of the
growing population, particularly agriculture and manufacturing, which
represented 10 per cent and 27 per cent of GDP respectively in 2014.
He lamented that notwithstanding the relevance of these
sectors, sectoral credit allocation remained low relative to credit to the oil
and gas sector, which stood at close to 29 per cent in 2014.
According to him, in contrast, credit to the manufacturing
and agricultural sectors stood at 10 per cent and three per cent respectively.
Emefiele said given the country’s population of over 200
million along with favorable youth demographics, “We were aware that if the
necessary support was provided to households and business such as improved
access to finance, and better infrastructure these measures would boost
productivity, and help in enabling greater direct investment flows into our
economy.”
He said: “As a result, there was a growing recognition on
the need to refine our monetary policy tools and regulatory framework in order
to ensure that it was more responsive to the needs of the Nigerian populace.
“It was important that this new framework enabled the flow
of credit by financial institutions to critical sectors in order to aid our
efforts at driving productive activities and creating job opportunities for our
growing population.”
He stressed that investments in agriculture and related
sectors, distribution storage systems, and necessary market infrastructure
remained critical to building a cost-effective, viable and sustainable food
system in Africa.
He, nonetheless, encouraged the management of UBA to build
on the gains recorded by providing access to credit and supporting small
businesses in these critical areas with funding and technical assistance.
He said: “Given the extent of your branch networks across
Nigeria and indeed in Africa, I believe that you can leverage on your knowledge
of the local economy to lend to households and businesses as well as provide
tailored products and services that meet the needs of your customers in these
critical sectors.
“By providing support to them you are also enabling
communities to thrive.
“As we all work together in supporting these critical
sectors, it would mean more jobs and greater economic growth in our
Communities.
“It also ensures that not only do we continue to grow our
economy, but that growth is broad based and inclusive.
“Again, the journey to the Africa of our dream must be a
collaborative one where all play our parts.”
Elumelu, in his earlier remarks, explained that the private
sector believed well- armed security operatives would go a long way in helping
to assure on security of the nation.
He noted that it was under the COVID-19 pandemic that some
Nigerians realised what the private sector could do under the leadership of the
CBN governor.
He said, “I think the most important thing was the move we
made to open up the Nigerian economy once more.
“We made a strong move. We have no option; the economy would
crash if we don’t do so. And there was so much pressure on the government.”
He commended the act of patriotism displayed by the private,
including the banks in acting with a sense of urgency to save the country from
the brinks at such a demanding period.