CSJ Publishes Review Of 2022 Subnational Agric Budgets, Implementation Report

Center for Social Justice — Mon, 07 Nov 2022 09:11:05 +0000

The Centre for Social Justice has published a budget review and half year budget implementation report for projects of interest to smallholder women farmers at the federal level and 5 focal states of Anambra, Oyo, Jigawa, Niger and Nasarawa

The review disaggregates the federal and the 5 focal states of Anambra, Oyo, Jigawa, Niger, Nasarawa vote for Agriculture for the 2022 financial year. The project has funding from the International Budget Partnership (IBP).
It reviews the division into recurrent and capital expenditure, the components of the recurrent expenditure, and the disaggregation into administrative and developmental capital expenditure.

It reviews the extent of implementation, up to the end of the second quarter of 2022, in terms of the release of the funds for the projects that have been identified to be of interest to small scale-women farmers. It ends with a capital budget monitoring documentation from members of the Small Holder Women Farmers Organization in Nigeria (SWOFON) in the states.
There are still credibility challenges associated with the implementation of the budgetary votes to agriculture, especially in projects of interest to small-scale women farmers. The state governments need to work hard to close the gap.

Our Lead Director, Eze Onyekpere noted that small-scale women farmers constituted 60 per cent of the farming population and produced 70 percent of food consumed nationally and there was need for an improved budgetary investment for smallholder women farmers, saying this would aid agriculture value chain.

“All plans and policies are based on budget and there are several plans and policies which have shown the need for investment for small-scale medium farmers.’’

It is therefore important that funds appropriated for smallholder women farmers go to them directly and not diverted into wrong hands.
In the proposed 2023 federal budget, the Ministry of Agriculture and Rural Development presents an interesting case study. Year after year, the same kind of provision is made and at the end of the year, there are no clear deliverables. There is a vote for the provision and installation of solar-powered streetlights in rural communities in the 6 geo-political zones at N849.877million; construction of feeder roads in rural communities in the 6 geo-political zones costing N2.613bn. Where are these projects located? This kind of vote provides opportunities for massive corruption considering that budget monitors cannot just wake up and start going across the federation in search of projects without location. Another vote in the sum of N14.809bn is for multilateral/bilateral tied loans – rural access and agricultural marketing projects. The RAAMP project has been ongoing for so many years. Can Nigerians get an account of what has been achieved with the loans and the counterpart funding from the budget? The usual value chain provisions are made but they are all hanging and have no clear deliverables.

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CSJ Enjoins CBN To Raise NIRSAL MFB Capital To N100bn

Center for Social Justice — Tue, 23 Aug 2022 23:17:39 +0000

The Centre for Social Justice (CSJ) has enjoined the Central Bank of Nigeria (CBN) and the Bankers Committee to raise the capital base of NIRSAL Microfinance Bank from N 5 billion to N 100 billion.

The NMFB is a brainchild of the Bankers’ Committee, the Nigeria Incentive- Based Risk Sharing System and the Nigerian Postal Service (NIPOST).

The Bankers Committee provided the set – up equity capital and owns 50 per cent of the bank, while NIRSAL and NIPOST own 40 per cent and ten per cent respectively.

The CBN Governor, Mr Godwin Emefiele, had last week during a facility tour of the MFB said loans would be given at five per cent with a seven – year repayment period.

Speaking on the development, the Lead Director, CSJ, Mr Eze Onyekpere, said on Sunday that while the initiative was vital in view of its potential to provide liquidity to small businesses, the N 5bn capital base of the MFB might be inadequate to bridge the funding gap.

He said, “ This is a welcome development that will tackle the challenge of access to credit for SMEs. The implication is that the loans will be available at rates below the inflation rate and monetary policy rate. This to a great extent implies that the beneficiaries will be enjoying a subsidy.

“Access to credit has remained a huge challenge for Small and Medium Enterprises and monetary policy and money deposit banks over the years have shown no inclination at easing this challenge.

“However, for the foregoing benefits to materialise, this initiative needs to be taken to scale. The share capital of N 5 bn is paltry and will not scratch the surface of the needs in the sector. A minimum fund of not less than N 100 bn is required.”

He said “the downside of this intervention is that the conventional Micro Finance Banks will stand no chance of competing with this special microfinance initiative. If it is taken to scale, it will crowd out their operations and they will be forced to wind up. But the positive benefits crowd out this downside.”

He said the initiative would increase value addition, create new jobs as small businesses would have access to credit to expand and deepen production.

Onyekpere said the establishment of the MFB would also create the opportunity of increased profitability. “This will provide more taxable income to individuals and SMEs from which the government’s revenue can be enhanced. Essentially, this initiative will reduce the unemployment figures, increase government’s revenue and boost productivity,” he added.

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Agriculture Archives - Centre for Social Justice

CSJ Publishes Review Of 2022 Subnational Agric Budgets, Implementation Report

CSJ Enjoins CBN To Raise NIRSAL MFB Capital To N100bn