Kwara Farmers Benefit From CBN Scheme

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Farmers in Kwara State have no doubt had it good  as the Chairman, All Farmers Association of Nigeria (AFAN), Kwara State chapter, Mr Ajibola Tajudeen confirmed on Thursday that 1,000 of its members have benefited from the Central Bank of Nigeria (CBN)’s Anchor Borrowers Programme. Tajudeen, who made this known in Ilorin, said it was untrue that only politicians benefited from the scheme facilitated jointly by the CBN and the state government.

He said that the selection of beneficiaries was transparent and that it cut across the 16 local government areas of the state. Many local farmers in different parts of Kwara who were not members of AFAN had also benefited from the scheme, the beneficiaries engaged in the production of rice, maize, soya beans and cassava. The farmers got loans under the programme in form of farm inputs, depending on the size of their farms.

He, however, said that the inability of some farmers to pay the five per cent equity, part of the requirements for engaging in the

programme had hindered them from participating in the scheme.

The chairman noted that AFAN members in Kwara had received various supports from the state government over the years, urging it to keep supporting them. He also urged the state government to expand the scope of the scheme in order to enable more farmers in the state to benefit.

The scheme was initiated by the Federal Government through the CBN as

an agricultural intervention to help farmers boost production.

The Kwara government secured a N1 billion loan from the bank under the

scheme for local farmers who engaged in rice, maize, soya beans and cassava production.