By MICHAEL EBOH

The Minister of Agriculture and Rural Development, Dr Akinwumi Adesina, has chided banks in the country, blaming them for frustrating the successful disbursement of the N450 billion intervention fund of the Nigeria Incentive-Based Risk-Sharing System for Agricultural Lending, NIRSAL, programme. The programme is being promoted by the Central Bank of Nigeria, CBN.

Speaking at the inaugural meeting of the Nigeria Agribusiness Group, Adesina said that research carried out by the Ministry and stakeholders revealed that NIRSAL was yet to function properly and discharge its duty due to the high interest rate pegged on it by banks appointed to disburse the funds to farmers.

According to him, the high interest rate has continued to defeat the purpose of the establishment of the fund, which includes serving as credit risk guarantee and interest drawback fund programme to stimulate agricultural financing and trigger the nation’s agricultural industrialisation process.

He, however, noted that foreign organsations have increased their support for Nigeria, saying that global financial institutions have endorsed the establishment of staple crop processing zones in the country, which according to him would attract private sector investment in the industry.

According to Adesina, the development partners rallied around Nigeria’s agricultural transformation efforts with commitments, totaling $2 billion.

Adesina further stated that the private sector support for the agricultural transformation agenda in Nigeria hass tremendously increased within the last 18 months, adding that the sector was able to attract $8 billion worth of private sector investment commitments into the agriculture sector, from local and multinational companies.

Also speaking, Mr Richard Hargrave, Managing Director, Dizengoff West Africa Limited, said that Nigeria’s agricultural sector may not grow the way it should due to lack of funds for farmers.

Hargrave said it would be impossible for any farmer to survive with high interest rate, adding that because farming is a capital intensive business, funds has been one of the biggest challenges to farmers and until this was resolved Nigeria could not prosper in food sufficiency.

He said the passion and zeal shown by the Minister of Agriculture Dr Adesina to revive the agricultural sector was highly commendable but that much would not come out of it without the private sector driving the process.