Some officials in the Central Bank of Nigeria, CBN, allegedly collected bribes to the tune of N280 billion before they approved loans for farmers under the Anchor Borrowers Scheme, ABP, a stakeholder in the sector said.
Rotimi William, the Chief Executive Officer of Kereksuk Rice Farms made the allegation during a recent stakeholders’ meeting, adding that one of the reasons why the policy failed is because approving officials insist on collecting bribes before making the loan available to benefit farmers.
The Scheme is anchored by the CBN in collaboration with some commercial banks as part of the Federal government’s efforts to ensure an abundance of rice and food security for Nigerians.
But the ABP has been adjudged a failure by major stakeholders in the agri-business sector, including the International Monetary Fund, IMF, which claimed that farmers who benefitted from the Scheme have failed to pay back the loans.
Whereas the apex bank claimed that over N1 trillion has been released so far to the farmers, the IMF said barely 24 percent of that amount has been paid back by farmers.
The reason for the default, the IMF said is because the farmers used the loans for other purposes rather than what it was originally meant for.
Williams blamed the low payment level among farmers on the fact that the funds were not approved based on merit, adding that the policy initiated by the suspended CBN Governor, Godwin Emefiele has not achieved its purpose, a pointer to that, he explained is the high price of rice in the market.
He, however, said the Scheme should be overhauled for better results.
According to him, “The measurement of success should be a reflection of the price of a commodity in the market and in the past five years. What we have experienced is persistent increase in the price of rice across markets, coupled with an increase in smuggling activity, signally a supply gap in the market.
“This is the true signal of either success or failure. At this point, it is safe to say that Nigeria’s money was wasted,” he adjudged.
“This is the primary reason why the repayment levels are low: the funds were not approved based on merit and the recipients do not feel the need to pay back following the huge kickbacks given.
“To quantify this based on the N1.4 trillion, a total kickback of N280 billion was enjoyed by the approving authority within the bank
“I honestly believe that the ABP was developed with clear intentions and if the funds were disbursed on merit, the impact would have been immense. Its failure is down to the greed of the approving authorities and the negligence of the banks that accepted questionable collaterals.
“I believe that with minor adjustments, the impact could be positive, but with over N1 trillion disbursed and potentially lost, I am not sure the government will have the appetite to continue.”
