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Cross River government has announced that its micro-finance bank will soon
become operational.
The state governor, Prof Ben Ayade stated this Tuesday, during the
inspection of the office complex along with the Branch Controller, Central
Bank of Nigeria, Calabar, Sampson Isuwa and the CBN Head, Development
Finance office, Dr. Aniefiok Akpan Umoren.
The bank is being established to boost agriculture in the state.
The Governor said “the only way agriculture can be exciting for young
people is to go digital and professional, that is why in Cross River, we
are taking our time to be the largest rice producers in Africa. We have
set up the first rice and seedling plant in Africa, we are going into
massive and expansive cultivation of rice but to do all of that, we also
need a backbone.”
The governor also explained that “Cross River is now supporting CBN and
federal government with a state microfinance bank and we are hoping that
our date of April 27 as the commissioning date has to be sacrosanct,”
adding that “we have invited the CBN governor who will be here in person.
“When you ask young men to go into farming, where are they going to get
the resources?” Ayade asked rhetorically, intimating that although
Central Bank of Nigeria provides a facility with a minimal repay period,
he has set aside the sum of N500million which will be available to the
microfinance bank on the commissioning date when it will opened for
operations.
He remarked that “the money is set aside for civil servants who want to go
into farming, be it must be one, two or three hectares,” pointing out that
as part of his administration’s efforts to boost farming which is the
right road map for Africa and indeed Nigeria, “the state also has an
agricultural development company whose business is to provide agricultural
services with an extension service arm.”
Other ventures the governor disclosed would support the agricultural value
chain include, the white collar farming which allows one the luxury of
being a farmer, yet preserves his or her dignity as an educated person,
as most people think that the university certificate can no longer put
their houses on the ground, including the introduction of what he termed,
food on the table, hands on the plough.
Continuing, Ayade said, “in Nigeria we have land, we are looking for
farmers. We have farmers they are looking for money, we have money we are
looking for interest. Why would a developing economy that understands that
they want to move people away from oil to agriculture still want to put a
single digit interest rate in a very short gestation period in an
agricultural facility? Again, that makes it difficult, so it is the
microfinance bank that will underpin it with the support from Central Bank
of Nigeria.”
For Sampson Suwanee, CBN branch controller, “the Prof Ben Ayade-led
administration has demonstrated its resolve to create employment for the
teeming unemployed youths in the state,” adding that, “CBN is running
after Ayade because of the agricultural program as we want all to bank and
access credit facilities.”
Suwanee also added: “The only way to achieve this is to ensure that we
open microfinance bank branches as there are many places across the state
that don’t have banks. This will help them access credit and pay back. The
governor’s zeal to make sure that this state is number one is something
that we are very happy with. Let us be much stronger in food production,
that is the only way we can have economic development in this country.
On his part, Dr Umoren who heads CBN Development Finance office maintained
that “we are happy with Ayade for adding value to the economy of the
state, creating different clusters across the state to encourage youths to
go into farming of crops where they have comparative advantage.”