By Eyo Nsima

THE Governor of Central Bank of Nigeria (CBN), Mr. Godwin Emefiele, has said that the bank’s targeted interventions in the agricultural sector are not in favour of a certain section of the country as claimed by some critics.

Speaking at the unveiling of the 2020 wet season harvest aggregation and flag-off of the 2021 wet season input distribution in the South-West geo-political zone under the CBN- Rice Farmers Association of Nigeria, RIFAN, Anchor Borrowers’ Programme (ABP), in Ado-Ekiti, Ekiti state, Tuesday, he said that, the CBN interventions in the ABP were not only about rice production but over 21 crops which are widely spread nationwide.

According to him, over N300 billion had been disbursed to companies operating in the southern part of Nigeria, citing companies and farmers across Lagos, Edo, Ondo, Ogun, Osun, Ekiti, Bayelsa, Rivers, Cross River as major beneficiaries of the bank’s interventions.

He also Emefiele urged stakeholders in the various crop value chains to make consistent and positive strides towards attaining food security, adding that attaining self-sufficiency in food production will not come cheap.
He also said: “They have the talent, energy, enthusiasm, technological adoption capacity and all the right drive to revolutionize agricultural production in Nigeria.

“We must meet them half-way to ensure that we provide the enabling environment to make agriculture attractive to them. CBN stands ready to support youths that are willing to engage in agriculture.”