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CBN Faults Banks’ 1.7 % Lending To Agriculture

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The Central Bank of Nigeria on Tuesday lamented the 1.7 per cent lending by banks to the agriculture sector, saying there was a need to increase funding to the sector in order to reduce the country’s food import bill.

The CBN Governor, Mr. Lamido Sanusi, expressed the dissatisfaction in Abuja, while delivering a keynote address at a workshop organised by the African Rural and Agricultural Credit Association.

The seminar, with the theme, ‘Enhancing the agricultural value chain through innovation’, was targeted at transforming the agriculture value chain.

Sanusi said with agriculture employing about 60 per cent of the population as well as contributing 42 per cent to the country’s Gross Domestic Product, there was the need to scale up funding to the sector.

He said, “Agriculture is the backbone of most African economies with about 60-70 per cent of the poor living in rural areas with livelihood derived directly or indirectly from agriculture. For us in Nigeria, agriculture employs 60 per cent of the population. It also contributes up to 42 per cent of the country’s GDP and about 75 per cent of the non-oil sector’s GDP.

“If wealth creation and poverty reduction is to be achieved, the need to adopt efficient and cost-effective financial services that support agricultural production and innovation across the value chain is urgent. Regrettably, the agricultural sector of the country accounts for only 1.7 per cent of total lending by banks even though the sector accounts for over 42 per cent of the country’s GDP.”

Sanusi, who was represented by the Deputy Governor, Corporate Services, CBN, Mr. Suleiman Barau, said the bank’s involvement in the workshop was a demonstration of its resolve to enhance innovative agriculture lending across the value chain.

To achieve this, he said farming should be viewed as a challenging business with the capacity to create wealth and improve living standards rather than be seen as an opportunistic vocation.

He added that the CBN, as part of its developmental role in the sector, had released the sum of N189.29bn to 237 beneficiaries under the Commercial Agriculture Credit Scheme.

According to the governor, since inception of the CACS in March 2009, the bank has been able to fast track agricultural development, promote job creation and stimulate private and public-sector investments in the agriculture sector.

Also speaking at the event, the Group Managing Director, Union Bank of Nigeria Plc, Mrs. Funke Osibodu, said the bank had, in the last 20 years, supported the sector financially.

She said the outcome of the workshop would enable banks to better structure their credit facilities to farmers.

Osibodu said, “For majority of banks, agriculture financing has not been an attractive and profitable sector for the deployment of shareholders/depositors’ fund due to the perception of high risks.

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Kenyan Runners Dominate Berlin Marathons

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Kenya made it a clean sweep at the Berlin Marathon with Sabastian Sawe winning the men’s race and Rosemary Wanjiru triumphing in the women’s.

Sawe finished in two hours, two minutes and 16 seconds to make it three wins in his first three marathons.

The 30-year-old, who was victorious at this year’s London Marathon, set a sizzling pace as he left the field behind and ran much of the race surrounded only by his pacesetters.

Japan’s Akasaki Akira came second after a powerful latter half of the race, finishing almost four minutes behind Sawe, while Ethiopia’s Chimdessa Debele followed in third.

“I did my best and I am happy for this performance,” said Sawe.

“I am so happy for this year. I felt well but you cannot change the weather. Next year will be better.”

Sawe had Kelvin Kiptum’s 2023 world record of 2:00:35 in his sights when he reached halfway in 1:00:12, but faded towards the end.

In the women’s race, Wanjiru sped away from the lead pack after 25 kilometers before finishing in 2:21:05.

Ethiopia’s Dera Dida followed three seconds behind Wanjiru, with Azmera Gebru, also of Ethiopia, coming third in 2:21:29.

Wanjiru’s time was 12 minutes slower than compatriot Ruth Chepng’etich’s world record of 2:09:56, which she set in Chicago in 2024.

 

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NIS Ends Decentralised Passport Production After 62 Years

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The Nigeria Immigration Service (NIS) has officially ended passport production at multiple centres, transitioning to a single, centralised system for the first time in 62 years.
Minister of Interior, Dr Olubunmi Tunji-Ojo, made the disclosure during an inspection of the Nigeria’s new Centralised Passport Personalisation Centre at the NIS Headquarters in Abuja, last Thursday.
He stated that since the establishment of NIS in 1963, Nigeria had never operated a central passport production centre, until now, marking a major reform milestone.
“The project is 100 per cent ready. Nigeria can now be more productive and efficient in delivering passport services,” Tunji-Ojo said.
He explained that old machines could only produce 250 to 300 passports daily, but the new system had a capacity of 4,500 to 5,000 passports every day.
“With this, NIS can now meet daily demands within just four to five hours of operation,” he added, describing it as a game-changer for passport processing in Nigeria.
“We promised two-week delivery, and we’re now pushing for one week.
“Automation and optimisation are crucial for keeping this promise to Nigerians,” the minister said.
He noted that centralisation, in line with global standards, would improve uniformity and enhance the overall integrity of Nigerian travel documents worldwide.
Tunji-Ojo described the development as a step toward bringing services closer to Nigerians while driving a culture of efficiency and total passport system reform.
According to him, the centralised production system aligns with President Bola Tinubu’s reform agenda, boosting NIS capacity and changing the narrative for improved service delivery.
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FG To Roll Out Digital Public Infrastructure, Data Exchange, Next Year 

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The National Information Technology Development Agency (NITDA) has announced plans to roll out Digital Public Infrastructure (DPI) and the Nigerian Data Exchange (NGDX) platforms across key sectors of the economy, starting in early 2026.
Director of E-Government and Digital Economy at NITDA, Dr. Salisu Kaka, made the disclosure in Abuja during a stakeholder review session of the DPI and NGDX drafts at the Digital Public Infrastructure Live Event.
The forum, themed “Advancing Nigeria’s Digital Public Infrastructure through Standards, Data Exchange and e-Government Transformation,” brought together regulators, state governments, and private sector stakeholders to harmonise inputs for building inclusive, secure, and interoperable systems for governance and service delivery.
According to Kaka, Nigeria already has several foundational elements in place, including national identity systems and digital payment platforms.
What remains is the establishment of the data exchange framework, which he said would be finalised by the end of 2025.
“Before the end of this year and by next year we will be fully ready with the foundational element, and we start dropping the use cases across sectors,” Kaka explained.
He stressed that the federal government recognises the autonomy of states urging them to align with national standards.
“If the states can model and reflect what happens at the national level, then we can have a 360-degree view of the whole data exchange across the country and drive all-of-government processes,” he added.
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