Over 642,860 smallholder farmers across 35 states of the federation have received support from Unity Bank Plc under the CBN’s Anchor Borrower’s Programme, ABP to boost food production and attain self-sufficiency in rice production in Nigeria.
Giving the assessment at the flag-off of the 2020 wet season harvest aggregation in Kebbi State recently, Tomi Somefun managing director/chief executive officer of Unity Bank Plc, reassured the rice farmers of the commitment of the Bank to providing necessary support to rice farmers in Nigeria.
While delivering a goodwill message, Somefun went down memory lane stating that the berthing of the Bank is closely linked to the critical role it played in Agric financing, adding that “Unity Bank remains fully committed to its partnership with the Rice Farmers Association of Nigeria, (RIFAN) and its programmes”.
“This commitment will ensure the attainment of Central Bank of Nigeria, (CBN)’s target to achieve self-sufficiency in rice production through the association,” she added.
Unity Bank in 2019 earned an award of recognition, which was jointly presented by President Muhammadu Buhari and the RIFAN for its strong participation in the ABP in 2019.
She recalled that the bank’s participation in the CBN’s ABP dates back to 2017 after the official flag off the scheme in Kebbi State by President Muhammadu Buhari in November 17, 2015, noting that the first two-State-led-windows of the ABP was sponsored by the Bank.
“We financed wheat production in Jigawa in 2017 with about 1,600 farmers and in the same year, financed rice production in Sokoto State with a total number of about 6,600 smallholder farmers,” she recalled.
She stated that in 2018, the bank entered into a strategic partnership with three major associations – RIFAN, Maize Association of Nigeria (MAAN) and National Cotton Association of Nigeria (NACOTAN) and explained that the bank’s participation in 2017 provided the much-needed experience and the learning curves for the APB transactions.
