The Central Bank of Nigeria (CBN) announced that, as of February 2023, farmers had repaid N503 billion—representing 52.39 percent of the amount borrowed—under the Anchor Borrowers Programme (ABP). This information was disclosed by Abdul‑Mumin Isa, Acting Director of the Corporate Communications Department, in a statement on Monday.
Isa’s figures contrast with a report from the International Monetary Fund (IMF), which claimed that only 24 percent of loans disbursed under the ABP had been repaid. The IMF’s January 12 report noted that, although the CBN permits repayment in kind or cash, actual repayments remain low. It observed that “repayment is also low at 24 percent, especially since repayment can be made in kind, thereby limiting the tenor of the loans to one year.” The report added that weak repayment incentives, poorly targeted loans, and occasional diversion of funds to other purchases—such as new agricultural input trading companies—contribute to the problem.
In response, Isa clarified that N1.079 trillion has been released under the programme, of which N960 billion is due for repayment. He said the CBN’s initiative has supported 4.45 million smallholder farmers, who have cultivated over 6.02 million hectares of 21 commodities nationwide. Citing Food and Agriculture Organisation statistics, Isa highlighted that the ABP significantly boosted national output of key crops, with maize and rice reaching 12.2 million and 9.0 million metric tonnes in 2021 and 2022, respectively.
Isa also explained that the outstanding loan balance remains under a moratorium granted due to the COVID‑19 pandemic. The forbearance, initially introduced in March 2020, was extended to 28 February 2022. He noted that the loan tenor under the ABP is tied to the gestation period of each commodity; for example, loans to farmers growing perennial crops may have tenors of up to seven years.
The Central Bank reaffirmed its commitment to its developmental mandate of expanding access to finance for the real sector, particularly agriculture, and to supporting the Federal Government’s food‑security and economic‑growth agenda. Accordingly, the CBN continues to welcome applications from eligible Nigerian farmers and firms under the Anchor Borrowers Programme, which was established in 2016 to provide single‑digit interest‑rate loans to farmers.
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