NIRSAL MfB Moves Against Seven Coys Over N5.6bn Agric Debt
- Issues final notice on non-performing loansÂ
BY COBHAM NSA – In a bold attempt to sanitise its financial records of Non-Performing Intervention Loans (NPILs), the NIRSAL Microfinance Bank Limited (NMFB) has moved against seven companies whose debts are in the region of over N5.6 billion in the nation’s agric sector.
Consequently, the Bank on Tuesday issued a final demand notice to the affected companies that gained from the Anchor Borrowers Programme (ABP) to immediately clean up their acts and settle all outstanding financial obligations.
The latest move follows the Central Bank of Nigeria (CBN)’s directive to NIRSAL MfB to recover all NPILs from the errant companies.
The bank’s management said in a statement issued in Abuja that; “Following the Central Bank of Nigeria’s (CBN) directive to NIRSAL Microfinance Bank Limited (NMFB), to recover all non-performing intervention loans granted by NMFB under the Anchor Borrowers’ Programme (an intervention Scheme of the CBN), NOTICE is hereby given to the under-listed Customers, to offset their indebtedness to NMFB under the said intervention scheme of the CBN.”
The statement titled; “PUBLIC NOTICE TO BENEFICIARIES OF ANCHOR BORROWERS’ PROGRAMME WITH NIRSAL MICROFINANCE BANK LIMITED”, further said; “Earlier Demand Notices have been issued by NMFB to the last known addresses of the aforesaid Customers, hence, this Public Notice serves as the final demand notice.”
Defaulting beneficiaries of the loans granted by NMFB under CBN’s Anchor Borrowers’ Programme, are Sadolen Interworld Ltd, with Saidu Audu Adaji and Nura Musa Hassan as key promoters having a current exposure of N2.05 billion; Gum Arabic Farms and Commodities Ltd, with Alhaji Yusuf Ibrahim Babangida as key promoters and a current exposure of N1.22 billion and Prime Synergy Global Solutions Ltd with Mercy Ikeji and Jennifer Nyesom-Effiong as key promoters with an exposure of N1.45 billion.
Also featuring on the list are Asuj Food Production and Processing Ltd, with Abubakar Umaru Jibrilla as a key promoter having exposure of N581.41 million; Souvenire Seeds Nigeria Ltd with Roseline Omokora as a key promoter and exposure of N158.18 million and Con Investment Ltd with Lady Josephine Nwaeze as key promoter having a tag of N211.6 million as its current exposure.
Launched on November 17, 2015, by President Muhammadu Buhari, the ABP was introduced as a scheme targeted at Small Holder Farmers (SHFs) in order to increase their access to quality agricultural inputs and, thereby, improve the quality of produce to meet international standards.
The ABP’s thrust is the “provision of farm inputs in kind and cash (for farm labour) to SHFs to boost production of these commodities, stabilize inputs supply to agro processors and address the country’s negative balance of payments on food. At harvest, the SHF supplies his/her produce to the Agro-processor (Anchor) who pays the cash equivalent to the farmer’s account.”
It evolves from consultations with stakeholders, comprising the Federal Ministry of Agriculture & Rural Development, State Governors, millers of agricultural produce, and SHFs to boost agricultural production and non-oil exports in the face of unpredictable crude oil prices and their resultant effect on the revenue profile of Nigeria.
Importantly, the programme’s broad objective is to create economic linkage between SHFs and reputable large-scale processors with a view to increasing agricultural output and significantly improving the capacity utilization of processors. Other objectives include Increasing banks’ financing to the agricultural sector; Reducing agricultural commodity importation and conserving external reserves; Increasing capacity utilization of agricultural firms; and Creating a new generation of farmers/entrepreneurs and employment.
Others are: Deepening the cashless policy and financial inclusion; Reducing the level of poverty among smallholder farmers; and Assisting rural smallholder farmers to grow from subsistence to commercial production levels.
