The House of Representatives has decided to launch an investigation into the Anchor Borrowers Programme (ABP) under the Central Bank of Nigeria (CBN). Additionally, the lawmakers plan to examine the disbursement of N215 billion in loans by the Nigeria Incentive-Based Risk Sharing System for Agricultural Lending (NIRSAL).
This resolution was passed during a plenary session on Tuesday after a motion sponsored by Chike Okafor from Imo State was adopted.
The ABP, initiated in November 2015, aims to link smallholder farmers with anchor companies involved in processing key agricultural commodities. The program provides farm inputs (both in kind and cash) to smallholder farmers to enhance the production of essential commodities, stabilize input supply to agro-processors, and address Nigeria’s negative balance of payments on food.
By March 2023, the CBN had disbursed a total of N1.09 trillion through the ABP since its inception.
While presenting the motion, Okafor alleged that the funds meant for agricultural development have been misappropriated, leading to “food scarcity and malnutrition.” He highlighted that over the past eight years, the federal government has spent more than two trillion naira on agricultural interventions to ensure food availability for millions of Nigerians. However, due to alleged mismanagement and abuse of these programs, food scarcity and malnutrition persist in the country.
Okafor claimed that reports of abuse and mismanagement indicate that approximately N1.12 trillion was disbursed through the ABP to 4.67 million farmers involved in maize, rice, or wheat farming via 563 anchors. Additionally, NIRSAL disbursed N215 billion to support agriculture and agrobusinesses, while the Bank of Industry (BOI) provided N3 billion to 22,120 smallholder farmers through the Agriculture Value Chain Financing (AVCF) program and funded 49 agro and food processing businesses with N59.4 billion in loans.
In 2023, the federal government introduced a 5 billion Naira loan facility to the Bank of Agriculture (BOA) for livestock farmers nationwide. Furthermore, in March 2024, the National Agricultural Development Fund established a N1.6 billion recovery fund for the Ginger Blight Epidemic Central Taskforce (GBECT) to control blight disease in ginger.
Okafor alleged that these funds were misused, misapplied, and diverted to non-agricultural purposes. He stressed the importance of the agricultural sector in ensuring food security, improving nutrition, and supporting millions of livelihoods in Nigeria, noting that any abuse of these programs significantly impacts innocent citizens.
The motion was adopted following a voice vote conducted by Deputy Speaker Benjamin Kalu, who presided over the session. Consequently, the House mandated the relevant committees to conduct a thorough investigation into the alleged misuse of government interventions and agricultural funding, with a report due within four weeks for further legislative action.
){kind=link}